Obama says pointed abortion query “above his pay grade”
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DALLAS – U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama side-stepped a pointed query about abortion on Saturday by “mega-pastor” Rick Warren during a televised forum.
Asked at what point a baby gets “human rights,” Obama, who strongly supports abortion rights, said: “… whether you’re looking at it from a theological perspective or a scientific perspective, answering that question with specificity … is above my pay grade.”
He went on to reiterate his view that it was important to reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies.
Republican presidential candidate John McCain, who followed Obama onto the stage of the nationally televised event, was more blunt and more emphatic.
He said a baby’s human rights began “at the moment of conception … I have a 25-year pro-life record.”
Both candidates were vying for the “faith vote,” in particular the one in four U.S. adults who count themselves as evangelical.
Obama took questions first from Warren and McCain followed. The two shared the stage together briefly.
Some centrist evangelicals have said they appreciate moves by the Democratic Party to “soften” the edges of its pro-choice stand by stressing the need to reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies and abortions — and by also working harder in areas like adoption.
But for many conservative evangelicals — a key part of the evangelical base — life begins at conception and the argument ends there.
The issue remains one of the most divisive and partisan in America — as Obama and McCain highlighted on Warren’s stage.
(Additional reporting by Jeff Mason)
(Photo credit: REUTERS/Rebecca Cook, Files, USA)
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yeah moran if it wasnt for tax cuts the wealthy would have no reason to work harder thus give your lazy ass a job… so you should kiss G.W.b
Above his pay grade was a good answer, because no human should be answering questions that only God knows the answer to.
Its funny – this debate was meaningless. Religion is a sham. No one cares about some stupid pastor debate. This has nothign to do with war, economy, and all of our homeland problems. Once we stop with this relgious nonsense we can center on the real issues.
We the Egyptions satanist’s because they worshipped the sun?
Hello people – seperation of church and state. Go watch the 700 Club and stay out of politics.
RE:” He went on to reiterate his view that it was important to reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies”
Neutering usually helps….
Some liar said it was tyranny to “force” a woman to have a baby. Wow. So callous. We need to balance the rights of the woman who is pregnant against the rights of a person inside the womb.
Those who advocate “baby’s human rights began “at the moment of conception ” “are bunch of superstitious medievalists.”
The haters on the left are so tolerant and compassionate.
I am amazed and frankly dismayed at the myopic views shown in the postings here. You folks never, ever look at anything from anyone else’s perspective but your own. You want your view to be the only view and are, frankly, intolerant of others’. The view that life, which begins at conception in your view, must be protected at all costs is one I can agree with. But this same view directly contradicts death penalty advocacy as well as any war we are fighting which costs the lives of innocents including our own soldiers. Its hypocrisy pure and simple. Whether its abortion, sticking a deadly needle in someone’s arm or bombing a village in Iraq, its putting yourself in God’s place. This is the greatest sin of all.
I see a 3-in-the-morning telephone call ad in McCain’s future.
“answering that question with specificity … is above my pay grade…”
Obama answered the question with complete honesty, and he is correct…..now lets send him back to Illinois.
(to FINNISH his term)
And by the way, for all of those who don’t seem to get it, Obama was referring to God when he talked about the decision being above his pay grade. I think its a pretty good observation.
If McCain can debate the same way as he spoke with the Pastor, he has a legit shot.
Either way, we are going to have a liberal president.
You know, I think what he was trying to get at is that we may not really know the answer to that question. We can say what we think, or what we believe, and we can pretend to have all the answers, but the reason this issue is so contentious is because we humans don’t really know for sure. If we did, then there would be no reason to argue, would there?
He is trying to be pragmatic and realistic, by saying that the ultimate goal we have is to reduce the number of abortions. Making them illegal isn’t necessarily the only, or even the best, way to make the abortion rate go down.
“Above my pay grade”?!?! Uh, what happened to ANSWERING THE QUESTION UP FRONT? It would seem to be easier to just answer and not WEAVE!
I weep for America should he be elected. He has proved again and again that if he doesn’t have a script, he’s LOST and (in a word) WORTHLESS! Leaders should be decisive and give answers that truly answer the question.
Genuine answers are worth more than “Jokes”, especially if they fall flat.
Irrelevant question. Abortion is a state issue.
To all you people who think that Obama’s answer was “wimpy”–the question asked by pastor Rick Warren was ABSURD. WHICH ONE OF YOU CAN PINPOINT THE EXACT MOMENT OF HUMANITY IN A FETUS? Not even the world’s best scientists have been able to pinpoint the exact time a fetus becomes “human.” You pro-lifers are all a bunch of nitpickers dragging the human race back to the stone age, when women were barefoot, pregnant and submissive to men. Have all the theological discussions you want about the abortion matter, but stay out of the political arena, for God’s sake. Reason should prevail, not superstition. And on an end-note: I think Obama’s answer was about as good as you could give to a person who refuses to be open to reason and instead, CHOOSES to wallow in his beliefs that have long past their expiration date.
surreptitiously , bho
“Above his pay grade”?!?!?!? Give me a break. He certainly feels its within his pay grade to support legislation and court cases that allow unlimited abortions (even to the point of partial birth abortions and killing the baby post-birth) but when asked to answer a question that has to be answered if one is to have any position on abortion, he dodges it. This man is not fit to be a city councilman, much less President.
Andrew Austin,
I’m not aware that any state in history has ever forced women to have babies. The creation of new people is a natural process that the state has no ability to cause. Your rhetoric is telling. Only a person whose reason has been swallowed by fanaticism could view the preservation of life as a form of tyranny.
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Am amazed that anyone could considerer voting for a candidate who demonstrated such profound vacuity. Obama flatly refuses to express his beliefs on vital social issues? How can an empty suit a country?
It is amazing that single issue voters can influence an election. There are so many issues that are critical to our nation right now I would hope that people can look beyond abortion as a means to elect a president. A woman’s body is her own body and the moment the government steps in to legislate what she can and can’t do to her own body is the day that I cry in disbelief as the fundamentals of our country go into the gutter as the basic principle of separation of church and state gets thrown into the trash.
Obama votes present on every big issue. Except on his right to a life of public presents for just showing up. His pay grade is Lifetime Leech.
McCain is toast. He fumbled and bumbled his way through that interview, telling false anecdotes (\”oh hey, did i mention i was a prisoner 40 years ago?\”) and dishing out kindergarten-level logic (\”evil exists. must be defeated!\”). DUUURRRRRRR
Even though the rights of unborn children are above his pay grade he can still vote to have them killed. What kind of double-think addled new-speak is this?
These weasel words rank right up there with USA Today’s report that BHO considers sin to be defined as anything that differs from his opinion of right and wrong.
It is for reasons like this that thoughtful people are coming to the conclusion that BHO is more than a garden variety left wing American stuffed shirt elitist but rather a dangerous menace to the cause of human Liberty.
Obama would not have nominated Clarence Thomas because he was not qualified for the job. Wow! Not because he disagrees with his votes. Obama just gave a pass to everyone of his peers not to vote for him in good conscience.
Obama continued to illustrate that he loves to hear himself talk. Lots of long-winded narratives for responses that sound good on the surface only. McCain can be awkward whilst speaking, but at least you get an actual answer and you know specifically where he stands when he is done talking.
“It’s above my paygrade” is the same lame answer he would give to Russia, Iran, Isreal, Mexico, and an energy plan. The only definite answer he does have is raising taxes, no drilling for our own oil, and wait to see what the poll numbers say when respongding to foreign affairs. He’s lame. The Dem’s might as well have elected a 22 year old liberal right out of one of our most liberal colleges with the same inexperienced and ignorant viewpoint of the world and our country. Simply pathetic!
30 million and counting , there is no more important issue than life and death , you are lucky abortion was illegal when you were born or you would not be able to have an opinion , and it is your insistence on killing babies that has led us to where we are today , show me a dem that does not kill babies and they will get my vote
you liberals want to save the world … excepting of course for the babies right here in america
Thank the Lord everyone still has time to picture the baby who survived an abortion laying on a table and left to die, which is what Mr. O stands for, and will continue if he gets elected. But what about asking the question of why has this country gotten to a point where there are so many that would dispose of a life, because they refuse to suffer consequences of their actions? They want to play, but they refuse to pay for their actions, in spite of KNOWING BEFOREHAND what is at stake. Ut oh, just got pregnant. Oh well, just kill it. What a mentality that has developed in this great country. Sickening.
Senators are paid a six figure salary precisely because they are supposed to have gained sufficient wisdom to make these determination and act on them.
Andrew Austin’s comment that for the state to intervene to save the life of the unborn constitutes “tyranny” is perverse. If “freedom” requires the ability to snuff out innocent life, then none of us is safe from Andrew’s murderous outlook.
The unborn have faces; it’s not their fault that we have difficulty seeing them. Giving a name to someone doesn’t make them more or less human. In the concentration camps, the Nazis branded Jews and others they dehumanized with numbers. Once you admit that an unborn baby is human and is alive, as is uncontestable medically, his or her life should be protected.
a womans right to sex without accountability is far more important then the life of a baby , what are we talking about here a baby i mean come on , kill it and get back to having all that sex without consequences
fifty years from now the abortion issue will be equated to the Slavery issue. Obama should thank the thousands of northern soldiers who died to end slavery because they believed slaves were human and made it possible for him to become a senator
To be consistent pro abortion Democrat, if you have to allow parents to murder their children at any age. Hey don’t mess with my right to choose.
Obama’s answer is typical of any democrat. Never take a position. Liberals only care about the polls. Liberals don’t stand for anything or anyone. Only when something becomes popular will a Liberal Democrat take a position. Barack’s lack of respect for the United States and Americans in general is a clear indicator of the way he’d run this country…..”into the ground”. He panders to the Europeans and special interest groups. He hates evangelicals, hard working americans, and anyone that disagrees with him. Voting this radical into office would be a vote for socialism and the ultimate weakening of the U.S. This country was built on the back of hard working people that don’t resemble Barack one bit. Barack is an egostical, European loving, hate speech raised socialist. Go ruin somebody else’s country Barack…I don’t want your weak minded leadership here. I’m sure some Middle Eastern country would love you to be there dictator. “Above my pay grade”. Is that your answer when you get tough questions Barack????? Dealing with the Russians or Iran….above my pay grade….your so weak and have no idea how to lead this country.
“It doesn’t matter when life begins. For the state to force women to have babies represents tyranny against which Americans should fight and die. Better to sacrifice the fetus for the sake of human freedom than kill grown men with names and personalities”
Wow, now I’m certain that this comment wasn’t meant to be so insidious, but at what point does someone lose their credibility on a topic? You would rather kill unborn fetus’ (some say children) who have no say in the matter, then send a volunteer force to war (That IS a soldiers job btw, to fight and kill) and do the thing that their commander-in-chief asks? I would like to remind the democratic anti-war side that it was a democratic administration that sent us to Vietnam (Kennedy and LBJ) So there is no guarantee that a political party is the machine to war. McCain won me because of his ethics, his honor and his honesty. If I don’t agree with him, I still believe that he has a reason for his policies and that the reason he gives will be an honest one I can live with honest discourse and disagreement, but the fact that Obama seems unable to speak and stumbles and hesitates, while obviously educated, tells me he is searching for the “right” way to phrase something. I don’t trust him.
The Republicans are trying to use the low approval ratings of Democrats in Congress, gay issues and abortion for political gain again this election cycle.
I think it’s important to remind folks that having a majority of ONE with at least one Independent spying on the Dem’s plans (Lieberman), with a Republican president who promises to veto any bill he doesn’t like – makes it extremely difficult to solve ANY problem.
I could also remind you that Democrats continue to have a much better approval rating in Congress then do the Republicans currently serving there.
As for using the abortion and gay rights argument (he’s pro-choice or a baby killer and marriage is between a man and a woman), Republicans had the majority in congress for 12 years, they had a conservative supreme court during those years and a well liked Republican president for at least 10 of those years — what was their problem? Why didn’t they kill the Roe vs Wade law? Why didn’t they pass a constitutional amendment making it a law that marriage is between a man and a woman?
It’s simple folks. If they killed those laws — they’d have no platform to run on in the next election cycle.
If you are Catholic you cannot vote for a pro abortion democrat. That is just a fact. You will be committing a mortal sin and will be an accessory to murder.
Obama is obligated to have an opinion answer the question. A real man worthy of the presidency should have the courage to form an actual opinion and the stones to speak it. What a coward.
Whatever your views are on abortion, the answers of the two candidates were very telling. McCain had the courage to stand up for his view, while Obama wimped out and gave a non-answer. Obama is finding that he can’t be everything to everyone once he has to appeal to people outside of his liberal Democrat base.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. All you pro-lifers are just loving it aren’t you? Do you REALLY think John McCain will put overturning Roe Vs. Wade at the top of his list if he is voted into office? You are all a bunch of superstitious sheep being lured into the same old political loop-de-loops intended to distract us from what is really going on: the bargain basement sale of our government to the corporate elite at the cost of our children and the middle class of this country. Don’t you think you should be thinking about healthcare for your parents and yourselves and your children? And a host of other ills this country is suffering from: Iraq, Afghanistan, the rise of gang and youth violence once again, Russia, methamphetamine, illegal immigration, the rising costs of college education, the burgeoning senior population, small farmers going under because of corporate farms that rape the land for pure profit then are rewarded by the government with grants and emergency monies for doing so, the displaced victims of Hurricane Katrina, the oil companies, lobbyists, government-sponsored unconstitional wiretapping, the list goes on. I THINK OBAMA’S RESPONSE WAS A FAIR AND REASONABLE ANSWER TO A STUPID AND ABSURD QUESTION. OBAMA ’08!!!
Obama should switch his campaign theme from “Change” to “No Fetus Can Beat Us.” Remember it’s in our Declaration of Independence that it’s our right to “LIFE, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
Obama became quite lost in his non sequiturs
“It doesn’t matter when life begins. For the state to force women to have babies represents tyranny against which Americans should fight and die. Better to sacrifice the fetus for the sake of human freedom than kill grown men with names and personalities.”
I’m not certain whether or not this comment is meant as “shock value” to get us to think about our position or a failed attempt at “logic”. If the “logic” is that we live in a country that is tyrannical when it comes to abortion then I am certainly not a United States citizen. I find it completely asinine that some would think more babies–not fetuses–should be aborted in an attempt to increase freedoms. And remember, it is the brave grown men and women who have be willing to make the ultimate sacrifice so that we can enjoy the freedoms that we have in this country. For anyone who feels that their freedoms are violated, I personally invite you to feel free to move to a nation that is more in accordance with your beliefs.
It absolutely matters at what point the baby’s “human life” status is recognized. For one human’s life trumps the “freedom” of another. A person’s freedom, or individual liberty, ends at the point where it infringes upon the freedom, or individual liberty, of another. That seemingly thinking people don’t understand this point is exasperating. The question of life is absolutley integral to the issue of abortion. Life trumps “choice”. Am i “free to choose” to walk away from a fatal car accident that I caused? NO! Even though the loss of that “choice” may have very negative consequences, I do not get to “choose” a destructive choice. This is why pro-life is really opposed by “pro-death”… not pro-choice. If you could demonstrate that life begins at the arbitrary moment of departure from the womb, that would be a compelling argument; however, modern science contiues to prove the opposite. Everything we have learned in recent decades points to beginning of this unique, human life at conception, when the unique personal DNA is formed. Every study shows how the stages of development inside the womb are no different than after departure (birth). This primitive form of denial where we kill the child before we can “see” it is a denial of reality and refusal to accept the very real consequences of behavior tha tin the vast majority of cases was completely voluntary, if irresponsible. Most of us on the pro-life side have even conceded to allowing abortions in the case of rape to eliminate the cases where the mother had no part in the real “choice” (fertilization). This in an effort to save the (over 98%) babies produced by sexual behavior the mother consented to. The “pro-choice” crowd does not make any similar concessions, even blocking the right of parents, charged with the health and welfare of their under-age daughters, to be informed, let alone decide. On top of all of this and on a purley legal front, there is absolutely NOTHING in the U.S. Constitution that speaks to the issue of abortion, privacy, or the so-called “right to choose”. The Roe v Wade decision has absolutely no constitutional support. Please show me where in the Constitution this so-called “right” is defined or protected.
Obama proves once again he is not a leader. He will not take a stand on anything, except passing out our money. Every-time he opens his mouth, he drops in the polls. As unbelievable as it may sound, I’m starting to see a McCain landslide in November.
The choice is not when you have the child. The choice was when you had unprotected sex. The majority of abortions that happen are what I consider lifestyle abortions. That is, someone getting an abortion to not interfere with their life at that time. A perfect example is a friend of mine got an abortion a few weeks ago because if she didn’t, she couldn’t go on a cruise in 6 months.
The biggest irony that I see is that the same people that are OK with leaving a baby out to die who survived an abortion will be the first to persecute someone who picks up a mother on the way to an abortion clinic, rapes the mother, then kills the child.
If we’re going to be ok with leaving babies out to die after they have survived an abortion (Which Obama does), why even take it to the doctor? After the child is born, just put a bullet through his head.
Andrew: No one forces women to have babies. There is no state mandate that women have intercourse or unprotected intercourse. Women make that decision on their own. It’s only when that intercourse results in pregnancy that the state becomes involved. A life has been created. And allowing the woman host to kill that life should not be acceptable to a society that calls itself civilized. You give far, far too much weight to a woman’s right, and none to the baby’s right to life. Give this issue more thought, please.
Obama is an empty suit.
Above my pay grade? He does realize that he is running for president right? That would make him the most important person in the world. That proves that he is not fit to run this country.
After last night’s forum, Obama has solidified the fact that he has neither the spine nor integrity to lead us. Just shameful.
Even more telling was Obama’s answer about intervening in foreign matters. He said he wouldn’t intervene without “international” consensus. The Pastor then said, “You won’t use the military without UN approval?” Obama replied, “No I would.” Obama is either a liar or pathetically indecisive.