Romney’s Devolving
Mitt Romney in 1994:
… As a nation we recognize the right of all people to believe as they want, and not to impose our beliefs on other people. I believe that abortion should be safe and legal in this country. I have since the time that my mom took that position when she ran in 1970 as a US Senate candidate. I believe that since Roe v. Wade has been the law for 20 years, that we should sustain and support it, and I sustain and support that law and the right of a woman to make that choice. And my personal beliefs like the personal beliefs of other people, should not be brought into a political campaign.
Mitt Romney in 2010:
I never really called myself pro-choice.
Mitt Romney’s position on abortion has devolved, as he increasingly panders to the religious right for votes. It’s a sign of how extreme the Republican Party has become; Romney knows that in the current climate, his political career in the GOP will be finished if he holds to his earlier principled stance.
UPDATE at 3/11/10 12:41:29 pm:
“I think I’ve made it very clear. I was pro-choice, or effectively pro-choice, when I ran in 1994.”
(Hat tip: simoom.)