Junkie, the only thing more pathetic than repubs going after other repubs with illegitimate left wing charges is when they force them. MRL is interested in LIFE. Hello?

Jake,
If I were your editor, I’d say your story ignores some real questions. It’s kind of a “man bites dog” story for a major organization to endorse a “newcomer” over two veteran House members who have previously been endorsed as pro-life. Shouldn’t a reporter call RTL to ask why?

G. Loudon is running for her husband’s seat — seeking his third term, some might say. She has no record of her own. But J. Loudon has a voting record. If one looks at the 2007 Missouri Right to Life Legislative Scorecard, Sen. Loudon is listed as voting for the MO RTL position 6 of 28 votes. For comparison, if you look at Sen. Joan Bray, a pro-choice senator, she was with RTL 13 of 28 times. I guess that makes Joan Bray twice as committed to right-to-life as John Loudon. Now it is possible that Mrs. Loudon holds different views from her husband. But she sure ain’t telling that to voters! I’d love for someone to ask MO RTL how they came up with this endorsement.

Campaign Worm - I won’t pretend to understand Missouri Right to Life’s endorsement process. But I just looked at their legislative scorecard (link below) and Jeff Smith also voted with MRL’s position 13 times, while Chuck Gross only voted with them 6 times. Over in the house, Tammy Faye voted with MRL 8 of 19, the same number of times as Jeanette Mott Oxford, who is a member of Planned Parenthood and would certainly call herself pro choice.

http://www.missourilife.org/news/2007/august2007.pdf
Scorecard starts on page 3.

Nick,

I think you’re backing up my point that RTLs endorsement is not necessarily based on any objective reality of whether a person is right-to-life or not. So maybe it’s not really news.

MRL has no logic to their endorsements. This is just plain sad.

I think some of you are confusing MRL’s scorecard with their endorsements.

It’s all too true that Missouri Right to Life has used some ugly political tactics, just because they were mad about the fact that they couldn’t control every pro-life legislator when it came to MOHELA and the embryonic stem cell issue. (They scored the most pro-life legislators as having less “pro-life votes” than extremely liberal, pro-choice legislators.) They certainly don’t know how to treat even their best friends and allies.

BUT, their score card is different than their endorsements. They may have scored Chuck Graham and Joan Bray as having more “pro-life” votes than pro-life legislators, but you are NEVER going to see MRL ENDORSE those senators.

Endorsements are an entirely different ball park. They give those out carefully, to the legislators/candidates who they believe will really and truly fight for protecting the unborn.

As crazy as MRL acts at times, the fact that they’ve endorsed Gina Loudon makes me think that their core leadership knows her well enough that they think she will fight hardest for pro-life issues, or that she will be more effective when it comes to getting pro-life stuff done in the Missouri legislature. Maybe both. Maybe her husband’s record of getting pro-life/anti-abortion laws passed gave them a few ideas of what she might do.

Anyway, yes, MRL scorecard info can be very misleading, but an **endorsement** from them *does* say a lot about a candidate vs. the opponent(s).

mary.alice,

The first part of your post is a perfect statement of why the last part is irrelevant.

This is true… When MRL can’t control legislators like Neal St Onge, and Jane Cunningham then they turn to “new” blood. It is funny though how MRL seemingly forgot that Mr. Loudon unintentionally attempted to legalize abortions performed by anyone a couple years ago.

EB White wrote a lot more wisdom into his title character in Charlotte’s Web than some on these boards possess. Before praising Wilbur in her web, Charlotte quips, “People are very gullible. They’ll believe anything they see in print.”

WilsMarkus, either you are very gullible, or you are deliberately perpetuating a lie. The term in question was “spontaneous abortion,” aka NATURAL MISCARRIAGE. I am as staunchly pro-life as they come (one of the first 200 to order a new MO Choose Life license plate!), and even I have had the heartbreak of a “spontaneous abortion.” What Senator Loudon passed was compassionate prenatal care for women like me.

http://www.im4it.org for anyone else interested in the license plate…

Gina,
I loved meeting you Saturday night, in T&C. You’re ‘real’ and ‘get it!!’
A lot of people, don’t. I gave you my numbers, please write/call me personally. How can I help?
As another mother of 5…. (I know you remember me.)YOU GO GIRL!
Connie