Republican presidential nominee John McCain's choice of running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, has brought more focus on life issues during Campaign 2008.
Palin is a married mother of five, who most recently gave birth this year to a son, who was diagnosed with Down syndrome during her pregnancy. Also, Palin has a 17-year old daughter, Bristol, an unmarried 17-year old high school senior, who is pregnant.
Shortly after the birth of Trig, Palin said of she and her husband, Todd, "We've both been very vocal about being pro-life. We understand that every innocent life has wonderful potential."
Palin also announced that Bristol is engaged and plans to marry her baby's father.
"Our beautiful daughter Bristol came to us with news that, as parents, we knew would make her grow up faster than we had ever planned. We're proud of Bristol's decision to have her baby, and even prouder to become grandparents. As Bristol faces the responsibilities of adulthood, she knows she has our unconditional love and support."
Many pro-life and conservative organizations applauded Palin's decision to have her son, Trig, and her support of her daughter, Bristol.
Family Research Council President, Tony Perkins, said, "Unfortunately, teenage pregnancy has become all too common in today's society, regardless of a family's economic or social status. It is a problem that we remain committed to reducing through encouraging young people to practice abstinence.
Fortunately, Bristol is following her mother and father's example of choosing life in the midst of a difficult situation. We are committed to praying for Bristol and her husband-to-be, and the entire Palin family, as they walk through a very private matter in the eyes of the public," Perkins said.
American Life League President, Judie Brown, said, "The Palin family has provided us with a beautiful example of accepting with gratitude and trust the challenges that come not only with caring for a child with Down syndrome, but also of welcoming an unexpected grandchild. Even under trying circumstances, a child has come into the world made in the image and likeness of God. Bristol, like every scared and pregnant young girl, deserves our support and care. The Palins, with their great love for the sanctity of life, provide a stark contrast to the enemies of life who view unplanned pregnancies as a tragedy and a curse, instead of a blessing and a gift," Brown said.
Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, noted, the Palin's don't approve of their daughter Bristol's behavior, but added, "They are not going to compound the mistake by destroying their grandchild."
Land continued, "Contrast Gov. Palin and her husband's reaction to (Democratic presidential nominee, Illinois) Sen. (Barack) Obama's. During the campaign, Sen. Obama said that if one of his girls made a mistake and was pregnant out of wedlock, he wouldn't want her to be ‘punished' with the child. Pro-lifers don't see a child as punishment, but as a blessing. Gov. Sarah Palin and her family haven't just affirmed the pro-life position. They live their values."
The Palin's son Trig, has brought focus on children with Down syndrome.
An estimated 90 percent of pregnant women who are told that they may be carrying a child with Down syndrome, choose to abort the baby. That statistic prompted Ann Downey, state director for Concerned Women for America of New York, to develop an educational brochure for expectant mothers and fathers.
The brochure, available for free (download at: DownSyndromeBrochure.com), offers encouragement, a positive perspective, and a list of resources and support groups to help families learn more about their baby's opportunities.
Dr. Janice Shaw Crouse, political commentator for CWA's Legislative Action Committee, criticized some in the news media for their handling of the Palins' family issues.
"Attempts to blame Bristol's mother, and to discount abstinence programs based on one teen's mistake, marked an all-time low in bottom-feeding journalism," Crouse said.
Prior to the two presidential candidates' respective nominating conventions, they appeared at a forum hosted by Pastor Rick Warren, best selling author of "The Purpose Driven Life," at his Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California.
When asked by Warren at what point a baby is entitled to human rights, McCain responded, "At the moment of conception. I have a 25-year pro-life record in the Congress, in the Senate. And as president of the United States, I will be a pro-life president. And this presidency will have pro-life policies. That's my commitment. That's my commitment to you."
When asked the same question, Obama replied that he could not say when life begins, because it was "above my pay grade."
On a subsequent interview on ABC-TV's "This Week," Obama called his response, "too flip."
"What I intended to say is that, as a Christian, I have a lot of humility about understanding when does the soul enter into...It's a pretty tough question."
Obama added, "All I meant to communicate was that I don't presume to be able to answer these kinds of theological questions."
Obama's running mate, Delaware Sen. Joseph Biden, a Catholic, was asked his views on life matters in a recent interview on NBC-TV's "Meet the Press." On abortion," Biden said, "I'm prepared to accept the teachings of my church." On life, Biden said, "I'm prepared, as a matter of faith, to accept that life begins at the moment of conception. But that is my judgment. For me to impose that judgment on everyone else who is equally, and maybe even more devout than I am, seems to me is inappropriate in a pluralistic society."
The respective parties also touched on life issues in their adopted platforms.
The Republican National Committee on "The Sanctity of Human Life":
"Faithful to the first guarantee of the Declaration of Independence, we assert the inherent dignity and sanctity of all human life and affirm that the unborn child has a fundamental individual right to life which cannot be infringed. We support a human life amendment to the Constitution, and we endorse legislation to make clear that the Fourteenth Amendment's protections apply to unborn children. We oppose using public revenues to promote or perform abortion and will not fund organizations which advocate it. We support the appointment of judges who respect traditional family values and the sanctity and dignity of innocent human life."
The Democratic National Committee on "Choice":
"The Democratic Party strongly and unequivocally supports ‘Roe v. Wade' and a woman's right to choose a safe and legal abortion, regardless of ability to pay, and we oppose any and all efforts to weaken or undermine that right.
The Democratic Party also strongly supports access to comprehensive affordable family planning services and age-appropriate sex education which empower people to make informed choices and live healthy lives. We also recognize that such health care and education help reduce the number of unintended pregnancies and thereby also reduce the need for abortions.
The Democratic Party also strongly supports a woman's decision to have a child by ensuring access to and availability of programs for pre- and post-natal health care, parenting skills, income support, and caring adoption programs."
On a related issue, NARAL Pro-Choice America President, Nancy Kennan, called Palin "anti-choice."
"John McCain's choice of Sarah Palin as his running mate proves just how rigid and extreme his administration would be when it comes to a woman's right to choose. McCain's pick of anti-choice Sarah Palin is further evidence that his White House will be just another four years of Bush-style policies. Any remaining doubts about McCain's extreme anti-choice position, should be put to rest when voters learn about the combined anti-choice records of Sarah Palin and John McCain," Keenan said.
Also, the Rev. Carlton Veazey, president of Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice, said the Republican Party platform, if enacted into law, would be "harmful to women and families."
Veazey said that the GOP platform, among other things, "states that health care professionals, including pharmacists, must be able to refuse to participate in a service ‘for any reason.' This blanket support for religious refusals is a disservice to patients.
The platform also calls for increasing funding for abstinence-only-until-marriage programs, which have been proven time and again to be ineffective and harmful to our youth. Continuing to spend money on these dangerous programs is wasteful when we know that comprehensive sexuality education works and arms our children with medically-accurate information, not ideological scare tactics," Veazey stated.
One-time GOP White House hopeful and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, recently weighed in on the situation, saying society is losing respect for the sanctity of life.
Huckabee applauded the efforts of media campaigns, such as those employed by Missouri-based Vitae Caring Foundation, that promote pro-life messages.
"It's not causing people to be angry. It's causing people to think. It is this type of approach that is reducing the number of abortions in cities where Vitae is advertising. It is saving human life. It is elevating human life," Huckabee said.
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