|
Tim Kaine on Abortion
Democratic Senate Challenger; previously Governor
|
|
|
Personally opposes abortion, but keep government out of it
Q: When you first ran as Lieutenant Governor, you were classified as a pro-life Democrat. You're now not considered a pro-life Democrat. How would you describe your abortion position?KAINE: People use labels all the time.
But I'm kind of a traditional Catholic. I don't like it personally. I'm opposed to abortion. And personally I'm opposed to the death penalty. I deeply believe, and not just as a matter of politics, but even as a matter of morality,
that matters about reproduction and intimacy and relationships and contraception are in the personal realm. They're moral decisions for individuals to make for themselves. And the last thing we need is government intruding into those personal
decisions. So I've taken a position which is quite common among Catholics. I've got a personal feeling about abortion, but the right role for government is to let women make their own decisions.
Source: Meet the Press 2016 interviews of Veepstakes candidates
, Jun 26, 2016
Don't weaken or subvert the basic holding of Roe v. Wade
I strongly support the right of women to make their own health and reproductive decisions and, for that reason, will oppose efforts to weaken or subvert the basic holding of Roe v. Wade.
We all share the goal of reducing unwanted pregnancies and abortions. The right way to do this is through education and access to health care and contraception rather than criminalizing women's reproductive decisions.
Source: 2012 Senate campaign website, kaineforva.com
, Oct 9, 2012
Don't deny privacy to women making health care decisions
[As governor], we worked with Democrats, Republicans and independents to get results. Over the last four years, the GOP pushed ideology and wedge issues. Last week, they passed a platform demanding privacy for
Super PACs and denying privacy to women making health care decisions. Meanwhile, Democrats fought for the middle class.
Source: 2012 Democratic National Convention speech
, Sep 4, 2012
Increased access to contraceptive coverage
Tim has co-sponsored legislation to protect female workers and expand access to affordable health care for women. Tim will continue fighting to protect women's right to make their own choices about their reproductive health. He supports increased
access to contraception and introduced legislation to restore the contraceptive coverage requirement guaranteed by the Affordable Care Act in the wake of the Supreme Court's decision in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby.
Source: Virginia 2012 Senate campaign website KaineForVA.com
, Feb 29, 2012
If life begins at conception, we must outlaw contraception
Kaine explained that the common birth control pill works by a dual mechanism--both preventing fertilization, and preventing successful implantation when fertilization does occur.
Also, he added, intra-uterine devices work singly by preventing implantation.
Allen had a fumble on some basic science. The candidates were asked about conservative proposals to declare that life begins at conception. Allen said that defining life as beginning at conception would not outlaw contraception, as "contraception"
means stopping conception--that is, preventing fertilization from taking place:Moderator: Could you tell us, how do you think birth control pills and intra-uterine devices work?
Allen: I don't profess to be a doctor. I'm just using maybe a little
Source: Eric Kleefeld reporting on 2012 Virginia Senate debate
, Dec 7, 2011
Personally opposed to abortion, but it shouldn't be outlawed
Kaine, a Roman Catholic who worked as a missionary in Honduras reiterated his personal opposition to abortion, but maintained the practice should not be outlawed.When asked if he'd like to see the
Supreme Court overturn Roe the Governor answered, "I don't think the Supreme Court should." He continued, "Roe vs. Wade is ultimately about saying that there is a realm of personal liberty for people to make this decision."
Source: ABC News: Politics Blog
, Jul 31, 2008
Parental consent; ban partial birth; informed consent
While saying that he supports Roe and that he does not want to criminalize abortion, Kaine voiced support for three abortion restrictions.He backs a parental consent law in
Virginia which has a judicial bypass. He supports a ban on "partial birth abortions so long as there is an exception for the life and health of the mother".
He also favors an "informed consent provision" in Virginia which requires abortion providers to "give women information about a whole series of things, the health consequences, et cetera, and information about adoption."
"Those,
I have supported," said Kaine. "But I don't think ultimately we ought to be criminalizing abortion."
Source: ABC News: Politics Blog
, Jul 31, 2008
Promote abstinence; ban partial-birth abortion
I will reduce abortion in Virginia by enforcing current Virginia restrictions, passing an enforceable ban on partial-birth abortion, ensuring women’s access to health care (including legal contraception),
and promoting abstinence-focused education and adoption. We should reduce abortion in this manner, rather than by criminalizing women and doctors.
Source: 2005 Gubernatorial campaign website kaine2005.org, “Issues”
, Nov 8, 2005
I have a faith-based opposition to abortion
I have a faith-based opposition to abortion. As governor, I will work in good faith to reduce abortions by:- Enforcing the current Virginia restrictions on abortion and passing an enforceable ban on partial birth abortion that protects the life
and health of the mother;
- Fighting teen pregnancy through abstinence-focused education;
- Ensuring women’s access to health care (including legal contraception) and economic opportunity; and
- Promoting adoption as an alternative for women facing
unwanted pregnancies.
Too often politicians are interested in scoring political points, rather than in reducing the number of abortions. Many of the legislative proposals introduced in the General Assembly, like the ones to require unnecessary
building standards for doctor’s offices that perform abortions, are just political grandstanding. They encourage division and lawsuits rather than contributing to the goal of reducing abortions.
Source: 2005 Gubernatorial campaign website kaine2005.org, “Issues”
, Nov 8, 2005
Supports public abortion funding.
Kaine supports the CC Voters Guide question on abortion funding
Christian Coalition publishes a number of special voter educational materials including the Christian Coalition Voter Guides, which provide voters with critical information about where candidates stand on important faith and family issues.
The Christian Coalition Voters Guide summarizes candidate stances on the following topic: "Public funding of abortions"
Source: Christian Coalition Voter Guide 12-CC-q1a on Oct 31, 2012
Page last updated: Jul 08, 2016