Tolbert: Arkansas Right To Life Endorses Cotton
by July 28, 2014 5:05 pm 229 views
Arkansas Right to Life, along with the National Right to Life, rolled out an endorsement Monday for Congressman Tom Cotton pointing to both his consistent pro-life record as well as what they called “waffling and ducking” from his opponent – incumbent Sen. Mark Pryor on the life issue.
“As a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Tom Cotton has been a strong advocate for the right-to-life cause,” said Carol Tobias, president of National Right to Life. “Tom Cotton is needed in the U.S. Senate to continue his strong advocacy on behalf of the most vulnerable members of our society.”
In their endorsement, the pro-life group pointed specifically to differences between the two candidates on the Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act – a bill which would prohibit late-term abortions after 20 weeks, the point at which the unborn baby can experience pain. Cotton voted for the bill which has passed the House but has stalled in the Senate, where it has not had any support from Pryor.
“Mark Pryor has tried to have it both ways on the right-to-life issues, but nearly 12 years of waffling and ducking is enough,” said Jacki Ragan, Arkansas director to the National Right to Life Board of Directors.
I asked the Pryor campaign for comment on this legislation back in January but never heard back. Others in the media have had similar results.
Pryor has a 35% pro-life rating based on votes on legislation tracked by the National Right to Life, while Cotton has a 100% rating.
The 20-week ban is similar to the ban passed by the Arkansas legislature back in 2013. I will point out that this legislation was criticized by Mike Ross on the day he announced he was running for governor, however he voted for similar legislation while in Congress.
UPDATE – Erik Dorey, spokesman for the Pryor for Senate Campaign tells me – “As our senator, Mark has repeatedly voted to ban late-term and federally funded abortion practices. Mark is personally opposed to abortion, but he believes women should have the right to decide in cases of rape, incest and where the life of the mother is in danger.”