On Monday's American Morning, CNN's Kiran Chetry indicated that
individual liberty and the pro-life movement weren't compatible. During
an interview of Congressman Ron Paul, Chetry stated, "Freedom to make your own decisions...giving people the ability to make their own decisions, and the right to life movement don't always go together."
The anchor interviewed the libertarian-leaning Republican at the bottom
of the 6 am Eastern hour. Midway through the interview, Chetry claimed
that Paul is "not a huge social conservative," and then asked about his
recent speech at CPAC: "This is one of the largest social conservative
gatherings and you're a libertarian. What do you think your appeal is
among some of the young social conservatives?"
When Paul replied that "Well, I don't know where you got the idea that
I'm not a social conservative," the CNN personality explained what she
meant:
CHETRY: ...When you gave your speech [at CPAC], you talked a lot about- you know, about going to war and our foreign policy and making sure that we're not- I mean, there wasn't a lot of talk about gay marriage, and whether or not that's going to be a huge issue for you, come 2012,- gun rights, et cetera.
The Texas representative clarified that "what I talk about is freedom,
and let people make their own choices, and I make the point that in our
social lives and our religious lives- in the First Amendment, you get to
make your own choices, and therefore, we should be tolerant of
others....But I'm strong right to life, and I happen to have been
married for 53 years, so- you know, it's hard to say I'm not a social
conservative."
Chetry followed up with her slanted statement about the pro-life movement:
CHETRY: You know, freedom to make your own decisions and right to life don't always go together though.
PAUL: Excuse me again?
CHETRY: I said, freedom to make your own decisions, as you talk about- giving people the ability to make their own decisions- and the right to life movement don't always go together.
PAUL: Well, I don't see a conflict at all. It's just how you get there. Compulsion is one thing. You know, fair and equal distribution of wealth is something- I think people would sort of like to see everybody share in a large middle class. Well, some people want to do it by compulsion, and some people want to do it through the marketplace. I happen to believe that sound money and free markets distribute- produce more wealth and distribute it more fairly.
Though Congressman Paul didn't directly address Chetry's point,
pro-lifers would reply that the unborn child's right to life should be
protected, for "if you can't protect life, how can you protect liberty,"as the Texas congressman himself stated [1] in 2007. Chetry clearly started off with a false premise.
On the June 1, 2009 edition of American Morning [2],
the CNN anchor let "abortion provider" Diane Derzis denigrate all
pro-life activists as potential murderers. Chetry also sympathized with
Derzis when she asked her, "What is it like going to work knowing you have a target on your head?"