By Dave Andrusko

Pro-abortion Senator Mark Udall (D-Colo.)
Talk about the face of pro-abortion extremism. After being alerted to what pro-abortion Senator Mark Udall (D-Colo.) said in a debate sponsored by the Denver Post, I was reminded yet again why abortion advocates are desperate to talk about anything but abortion: occasionally their extremism is on view for all to see.
(Kudos to John McCormack of the Weekly Standard and Katie Pavlich of Town Hall.com for transcribing what Udall said in his debate with NRLC-endorsed Rep. Cory Gardner and in response to a reporter’s question.)
A moderator at Tuesday’s debate asked Sen. Udall
“We know that you support a woman’s right to choose, but given the advances in scientific understanding of fetal development, where pregnant mothers know at which week their babies grow fingernails and can swallow, would you support a ban on late-term abortions and if so at what week?”
Udall first began by describing the question as a “diversion.” According to McCormack, Udall responded by “citing the case of a woman who discovered during the eighth month of pregnancy that her child had a severe brain deformity.” Udall said
“To demand that woman carry that child to term would be a form of government intervention that none of us want to see happen. So, in sum, we ought to respect the women of Colorado and their point of view.”
McCormack noted, “Udall gave no indication that he supports any legal limits on aborting healthy infants late in pregnancy or any other restrictions on abortion, a position consistent with his voting record.”
McCormack then cited quotes from Pavlich’s column where she references an interview in which Udall was asked if he supported late-term and sex-selective abortion. His answer speak volumes:
“So you believe in a woman’s absolute right to make her own health care decisions, even if sometimes that includes late-term or sex-selective abortions?” a reporter asked Udall.
“Look, we should trust the woman and her family and her religious counselors.”
In her column, Pavlich reminds her readers that in 2000 Sen. Udall voted against a ban on partial-birth abortion, a ban that was eventually passed over determined opposition by pro-abortion Democratic senators, signed into law by President George W. Bush, and (contrary to what Udall implies below) upheld by the United States Supreme Court. She continued
“In a recent interview with Fox 31’s Eli Stokols, Udall defended his vote and argued Roe v. Wade backs the extreme position that partial birth abortion should be legal. He implied that because partial birth abortions are ‘very seldom,’ restrictions aren’t necessary. When Stokols specifically pressed him for his position on not only late-term abortion but also the legality of sex-selective abortion, Udall doubled down on his position.
“’I support Roe v. Wade,’ Udall said. ‘Roe v. Wade is long settled law. Roe v. Wade allows the states Eli to make their decisions about what the right balance is and we have the right balance here in Colorado.’
“’As you know, partial birth abortion is conducted very seldom,’ he continued.”