Abortion "Rights"...

I know this video was up at My Man Mitt. But I thought it deserved more thought. Let me start by saying I like Rudy Giuliani. He seems affable. I think he would make a good VP. He might even make a good AG. I don't think he should be President though. Having said that, even I was confused by the following video. Let me tell you why...



Neither Roe v. Wade or Planned Parenthood v. Casey held that there is a Constitutional right to an abortion. Describing it as a right is merely a rhetorical device used to legitimize a broader read thatn the legal opinions suggest. What is Giuliani's view of "rights"? Does his incorrect legal thinking lead him to the conclusion that abortion would need to have public funding?

One way of looking at a right is to say it is appropriate, it is absolutely justified, in any situation. So, to say a woman has a right to an abortion, you are essentially saying at any time, for any reason. If you say a woman has a right to an abortion in the first trimester, you are essentially saying a woman can have an abortion for any reason in that time period.

Even this reading of the law is stretched, in my opinion. But Giuliani goes further. Giuliani seems to think that a woman not only has the right to choose to have an abortion, she has the right to an abortion. This is way beyond even the most liberal reading ot the law. But his statement about publicly funded abortions makes sense when you realize that his how he views the abortion "right".

Giuliani's view is terribly flawed both legally, and from a public policy perspective. He claims that he doesn't personally think women should get abortions. Typically, when you want to reduce certain behavior you create disincentives. When you don't want to support it, you simply do nothing. When you fund it though, you increase the number of abortions. Giuliani isn't even in the mainstream on the issue. He is to the far left.