One of my most preached upon political subjects involves Barack Obama's support for the killing of newborn children. In 2001 he was the only senator to oppose the Born Alive Infants Protection Act when the time came for it to be voted upon (it was approved 98-0 but held up in the courts until 2007). It was designed to protect children who survive late-term abortions from being left to die in back rooms.
When the Illinois version of the bill came up, (which an amendment required be word for word similar to the federal bill) Obama killed it in the Health and Human Services Committee which he headed. When queried by 2004 senate opponent Alan Keyes why he would do that, Obama asserted it was because it lacked the wording of the federal bill, which specifically stated the bill would not jeopardize the ruling of Roe v. Wade.
Obama failed to mention that the 2 bills were identical, word for word, as a result of the amendment that Senator Richard Winkel sponsored. He also failed to mention his verbal opposition to that federal bill and that he did not support it at the time, but instead defiantly voted 'Present'.
There are those who defend Obama's support for the killing of these newborn children who, outside their mothers' wombs, are for all intents and purposes prematurely born children who when given the chance to escape their fates have gone on to live fulfilling lives, by suggesting the government should not be able to legislate what a woman does with her body or her children.
In such a case, 99% of people can agree that those babies outside the womb who, when given the chance to survive, can, are in fact human beings like themselves. However, there are some like the commenter who do not believe they should be protected by the government since it should be a woman's right to kill her own children.
Obviously this is flawed logic. The government has a right to legislate what a person can or cannot do, i.e. their 'rights', when those 'rights' infringe upon the rights of others. 'Your right to throw a punch stops where another person's nose begins.'
In other words, I am all for a woman's rights, but I do not believe anyone's 'rights' should include the right to kill other human beings. And even if the babies were unborn (which in this case, is not the case) if we can recognize they are human beings, mothers should still not have the right to kill them.
You see, the Constitution gives us 'the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.' The right to life of course is listed first since for the others to occur, that must inevitably be provided first and foremost. The right to life in the Constitution is absolute. However, nowhere is a person's right to their own body mentioned as absolute.
Why? Because the Constitution recognizes that when one's right to one's body infringes upon another's right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, than that right should be held in check. Your 'right' to your own body goes only so far as it does not encroach upon the rights of others.
God gave you hands. But neither He nor the government gives you the right to use those hands to harm other human beings according to your pleasure. God gave you a mouth. But neither He nor the government gives you the right to slander and verbally harass those who have done nothing to you.
God gave women wombs. But neither He nor the government should allow the children in them to be destroyed so lightly. A person's right to life supersedes another's right to their own body. By that reasoning, the only time abortion can be considered justified is when a mother's life is endangered as a result of her pregnancy.
Sources:
1. Official Senate Transcript, 2001 (see pgs. 84-90).
http://www.ilga.gov/senate/transcripts/strans 92/ST033001.pdf
2. "Obama is the Most Pro Abortion Candidate Ever" by Terrence Jeffreys.
http://www.townhall.com/columnists/TerenceJ effrey/2008/01/09/obama_is_the_most_pro-abortion_can didate_ever
3. "Links to Barack Obama's votes on IL's Born Alive Infant Protection Act" by Jill Stanek.
http://www.jillstanek.com/archives/2008/02/li nks_to_barack.html