Selective editing by the Associated Press leads to Rep. Rhoden issuing a statement
In today's Rapid City Journal, Representative Larry Rhoden says yes, he made that statement. Except the first half of it was a separate statement from the second. So, why did the AP put them together:
State Rep. Larry Rhoden, R-Union Center, said an Associated Press story in Monday’s Journal inaccurately interpreted comments he made in an interview about Referred Law 6, the state abortion ban he helped pass during the 2006 South Dakota Legislature. The ban contains no exceptions for rape or incest. Rhoden said the AP story did not accurately reflect his views.Read it all here.
The story quoted Rhoden, the House majority leader, as saying: “I’ve spent a great deal of time and thought wondering if it would have been wiser to write in the exceptions. We have a long row to hoe based on the numbers I’ve seen.”
Rhoden didn’t dispute the accuracy of the quotes, but he said the story put together the two statements that he made at separate points in an interview granted three weeks ago to suggest that he had second thoughts about the abortion ban, HB1215, because it was behind in the polls at that time.
The quotes were introduced by a paraphrase: “He (Rhoden) was swayed by women’s testimony that their abortions left emotional scars, but now — aware of polls showing his side behind — he has second thoughts.”
Comments
And we wonder why people are reluctant to grant interviews to the press!?!
Plain and simple backpedaling on Rhoden's part.
Why do the "VOTE YES" people keep claiming there are exceptions then? Why does the link on this website say there are exceptions. Can they claim the moral high ground at the same time they are lying to people?
Whether you realize it or not, this has been happening in South Dakota and will continue to happen as long as abortion is legal. How does it make you feel to be an enabler for these psychotic perverts? Proud?
I'm sure that's the first thing on their mind.
I'll tell you what's going to happen. The girl/woman will turn to an unsafe an dirty abortion.
Anon 12:20 – whether you want to admit it or not, many victims of incest have continued to be victimized because their attacker was able to remove the evidence against him by aborting the baby that resulted from his abuse.
If this poor girl delivers a “mass of tissue, hair and bones” as evidence, the delivery will be no less traumatizing for her than the continuing abuse by a family member.
Letting these criminals carry on their perverted cruelty doesn’t bother you?
Anon. 12:14 and 1:15, how many incest cases do you know of where the inbred child was used as evidence by the prosecution? Name one single case.
Questions: If a girl doesn't become pregnant, is it really incest/rape? If a boy is sodomized, is that really rape?
Answer: Conception has nothing to do with whether the act constitutes rape or incest.
If what you say is true, how come the proposed amendment has no exceptions for the extremely rare rape/incest abortions?
To answer your first request:
Rape/incest accounted for 1.0% of abortions in 2000.
www.georgetown.edu/faculty/ap85/001/2004/reasonsForAbortion.html
Rape/incest accounted for 0.9% of total abortions.
www.vanderbilt.edu/SFL/abortion_statistics.htm
Rape/incest accounted for less than 2% of total abortions.
www.mccl.org/abortion_statistics.htm
Just search for "abortion stats for rape/incest." There are many more if you are interested.
It's a great comprimise. No abortion in South Dakota and the liberals still get to allow 13 year olds to have abortions.
Maybe Stephi will drive her to Minnesota.
I am a victim of sexual abuse that thankfully never resulted in a pregnancy. However, had I conceived, I would have given up a few months of my life to allow my child to have the gift of life, regardless of how that child was conceived. My life is not worth any more than the life of my unborn baby.