Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann says competitor Herman Cain’s recent statements about abortion indicate he is “pro-abortion.”
During a recent interview on CNN, Cain said he opposes abortion “under all circumstances.” But then Cain said abortion in cases of rape or incest should be the “choice of that family or that mother.” Bachmann suggests that’s a contradiction.
“Clearly, the words out of his mouth indicated that he was in favor of a pro-abortion position, so I think there’s a lot of questions that people have (about Cain),” Bachmann said Friday afternoon. “I’m 100 percent pro-life.”
Cain has recently surged in public opinion polls, while Bachmann’s position in the race has fallen. During an interview with Radio Iowa, Bachmann also raised questions about what Cain said during Tuesday’s debate about negotiating with terrorists for the release of U.S. hostages.
“Certainly we would never do anything like that. That’s not our history in the United States…That would only encourage further hostage taking,” Bachmann said. “…I think there’s very real, serious questions about the capacity right now that each of us candidates has to run for president of the United States.”
Cain said later that he misspoke and would not, as president, negotiate with terrorists. Bachmann and Cain are among the six Republican presidential candidates scheduled to appear this evening in Des Moines at a forum organized by the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition. It’s not a debate. Each will have 10 minutes to address the crowd, then they’ll be questioned individually.