Appear at NARAL Fundraiser DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES SEEK PRO-ABORTION SUPPORT.

On January 21, all six candidates seeking the Democratic nomination for President bowed down before the country's largest pro-abortion organization and pledged to support legal abortion on demand. They also harshly attacked pro-life President George W. Bush.

Senators John Edwards (NC), John Kerry (Mass.), and Joe Lieberman (Ct.); Congressman Dick Gephardt (Mo.); former Vermont Governor Howard Dean; and Rev. Al Sharpton of New York all appeared at a "NARAL Pro-Choice America" gala to "celebrate" 30 years of killing unborn children in this country.

As she introduced the candidates, NARAL President Kate Michelman made clear the price she demanded from pro-abortion Democrats seeking her organization's support. She said, "Indeed when President Bush sends a Supreme Court nominee to the Senate for confirmation, I fully expect pro-choice senators to filibuster any candidate who does not uphold a woman's constitutional right to choose."

As the first speaker, Edwards warned that the "right" to an abortion is under attack and that "it is our responsibility to protect it." He added, "And so you have my word: I will help lead the fight to pass a federal freedom of choice act that will guarantee the right to choose no matter what the Court does." By this remark, Edwards apparently indicated his intention to reintroduce the so-called "Freedom of Choice Act," a bill pushed by NARAL unsuccessfully during the late 1980s and early 1990s. It is a proposed federal law that would prohibit states from enforcing even the minor limits on abortion that are currently permitted by the U.S. Supreme Court, such as brief waiting periods, bans on tax funding of abortion, and parental involvement requirements.

Rev. Al Sharpton received enthusiastic applause when he said that it's time for the "Christian Right" to meet the "right Christians" who support abortion. Sharpton sharply attacked President Bush, Attorney General John Ashcroft, and some of President Bush's judicial nominees.

Sharpton was followed by 2000 vice presidential nominee Joseph Lieberman. Recognizing that this was the first time all six candidates had been on the same stage, Lieberman stated, "There are probably gonna be many issues that we disagree on, but not this one. And I'd say to you in 2004, that if you are pro-choice, there will only be one choice and that is the next Democratic candidate for president of the United States."

Lieberman warned, "The President and many in Congress are preparing a fresh assault on the right to choose--probably the most aggressive attacks we've seen since Roe was decided." The "right to choose," he said, "is in grave danger from the President. This Administration has been undermining abortion rights from the day it took office."