Michael Steele, former chairman of the RNC, said an anti-abortion ban without any exceptions is “way outside the mainstream of American thought,” in an interview with “NewsTalk,” with a local news program in Washington, D.C. Wednesday, reports Politico.
Rep. Todd Akin, who started a firestorm Sunday with his comments about “legitimate rape,” opposes abortion even in cases of rape and incest, a position reflected in the Republican Party platform voted on this week in Tampa.
“There’s a wide array of views on the issue, and there are a lot. I think recent polls have showed a bare majority of Americans — 50, 51 percent of Americans — call themselves pro-life, but even in calling themselves pro-life, they recognize the exemptions for rape, incest and life of the mother. So this view held by [Rep. Todd Akin] is way outside that mainstream of American thought.”
Regardless, Steele said in a follow-up interview with Politico that there’s no need for Mitt Romney to push for an exception in the party platform. “You don’t want to create unnecessary noise and fights when the focus needs to be on the economy,” he said.
