Rick Lazio on Abortion

Former Republican/Conservative Representative (NY-2)

No litmus tests for Supreme Court justices; likes O’Connor

Q: What kind of justice to the Supreme Court would you support?

A: I would say Sandra Day O’Connor. She has a respect for precedence. I think she has had a distinguished career on the bench. And that’s what I think a senator should look for when it comes to confirmation. This is consistent with what Gore and Bush said in their debate. Look for the most experienced, qualified person, no litmus tests.

Source: Senate debate in Manhattan Oct 8, 2000

Partial birth abortion is infanticide

Q: Are there circumstances when the government should limit choice?

LAZIO: I had a pro-choice record in the House, and I believe in a woman’s right to choose. I support a ban on partial-birth abortions. Senator Moynihan called it “infanticide.” Even former mayor Ed Koch agreed that this was too extreme a procedure. This is an area where I disagree with my opponent. My opponent opposes a ban on partial-birth abortions.

CLINTON: My opponent is wrong. I have said many times that I can support a ban on late-term abortions, including partial-birth abortions, so long as the health and life of the mother is protected. I’ve met women who faced this heart-wrenching decision toward the end of a pregnancy. Of course it’s a horrible procedure. No one would argue with that. But if your life is at stake, if your health is at stake, if the potential for having any more children is at stake, this must be a woman’s choice.

Source: (X-ref Lazio) Senate debate in Manhattan Oct 8, 2000

No Medicare funds for abortions; OK to fund privately abroad

Lazio has consistently opposed efforts to make abortion illegal. He supported federal criminal penalties for blocking access to abortion clinics, and to allow organizations that provide their own money for abortions in developing countries to be eligible for international family-planning funds. But Lazio has also opposed using federal Medicaid money to pay for abortions for poor women, and he has consistently voted to outlaw the late-term procedure that anti-abortion forces call partial-birth abortion. Source: David Rosenbaum, New York Times Jun 4, 2000

No funding for abortion; but don’t criminalize it

Lazio opposes late-term abortions (called partial-birth abortions by critics) and has voted against government funding for abortions for poor women on Medicaid, women in prison and women in the military. “I do not want to criminalize abortion,” Lazio said in an upstate campaign swing Monday. “On the other hand, I want to make it rarer and I don’t think just because we have a right, that we need to subsidize that right.” Source: Associated Press May 25, 2000

First trimester abortion OK; partial birth not

Lazio would prohibit the late-term abortion procedure known as “partial-birth” abortion. He says, “Abortions should be legal during the first trimester. I also supported the Child Custody Protection Act.” Source: National Political Awareness Test 1998 (vote-smart.org) Jul 2, 1998

Voted YES on banning partial-birth abortions.

HR 3660 would ban doctors from performing the abortion procedure called "dilation and extraction" [also known as “partial-birth” abortion]. The measure would allow the procedure only if the life of the woman is at risk. Reference: Bill sponsored by Canady, R-FL; Bill HR 3660 ; vote number 2000-104 on Apr 5, 2000

Voted YES on barring transporting minors to get an abortion.

The Child Custody Protection Act makes it a federal crime to transport a minor across state lines for the purpose of obtaining an abortion. Reference: Bill sponsored by Ros-Lehtinen, R-FL; Bill HR 1218 ; vote number 1999-261 on Jun 30, 1999

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