NPR: National Right To Life Pulls a 180

National Right To Life Pulls a 180

The National Right To Life Committee, one of John McCain's most ardent foes in Washington and on the campaign trail, is dropping its opposition to him. Now it says it's "grateful" for McCain's "strong pro-life" record.

Yes, this is the same John McCain who's been trading insults and accusations with NRLC since the late 1990s, when he took up the cause of campaign finance reform. When he ran for president eight years ago, he called single-issue anti-abortion voters "otherwise intelligent people." When he pushed the McCain-Feingold bill through the Senate in 2001, the committee's lawyer called it a "pernicious attack" on grassroots organizations.

As the committee gained strength in Washington, it became a leader in opposing limits on political spending by outside groups -- groups like itself. Its state affiliates have frequently challenged, and often won, court challenges to McCain-Feingold and other campaign finance laws.

NRLC endorsed Fred Thompson for president last fall. Hadn't he co-sponsored McCain-Feingold? Not a problem, the committee said, reminding its members that McCain backed embryonic stem-cell research.

So when McCain won the South Carolina primary last week and Thompson dropped out, the committee had to readjust.

Monday it urged anti-abortion voters "to do what is necessary" to elect a president who opposes abortion rights. NRLC endorses no candidate specifically, but praises all of them -- except Rudolph Giuliani. He hasn't changed his pro-choice stance, and the Right To Life Committee hasn't changed its opposition to him.

-- Peter Overby

8:00 AM ET | 01-29-2008 | permalink

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