Abortion issue decides vote for student

Kasey Green has made her choice for president. "Above the economy and everything else, I feel I need to support life," the Nursing senior said. And, she said, her strong views supporting abortion restriction will influence her decision to vote to re-elect President Bush. Because the Supreme Court currently weakly supports abortion restriction, she said she is worried about the possibility of an appointment of another justice who supports abortion rights by a Democratic president. Despite her choice for president, Green said "[Arkansas Gov. Bill] Clinton had more of a grasp of what the family is," than the Republicans who introduced the family values issue into the campaign. And she said she mistrusts the Republican party's attempts to stain Clinton's campaign through what she sees as sensationalizing of Clinton's reputation as a womanizer and Hillary Clinton's non-traditional, professional role. But Green said she is glad that the issue of family values was brought to public attention because of the demise of morality in the country. Wharton senior Felicia Beal also said she ranks abortion as one of the top three most pressing priorities in the nation, alongside the economy and education. Beal said she initially considered the pro-life perspective "from a constitutional and spiritual standpoint" when she first entered college and became a Christian. She said that she will "most likely" vote for Bush and is convinced of Bush's genuine concern for the family values he mentions while campaigning. Likewise, Wharton senior Corine Takiguchi is making her choice for president based largely on the abortion issue. "I cannot vote for someone who treats life so callously," she said, and therefore will vote for Bush. She admires Bush for assuming a largely unpopular stance in favor of abortion restriction because "no one in their right mind would ever support it if they wanted to be elected." Takiguchi said she perceives the abortion issue's central focus on women's choice to merely be a "marketing ploy" and "emotional manipulation" on the part of advocates of abortion rights. She added that she does not believe national legislators intend to oppress women. But some students who support abortion restriction are not certain who they will be voting for tomorrow. Though College senior Susan West also feels that abortion is one of the crucial issues facing this country, she is still groping with the question of who to support. While she said Bush is lacking in "godly wisdom" and "doesn't understand the common people," she said she believes Clinton has "no fear for God" and is eager to "embrace immorality for votes." "As a Christian woman, I cannot stand up for women's rights and then say that women should be allowed to murder their children," West said. "If it is wrong for men to oppress women . . . it is also wrong for women to do the same to children." "To oppose sexism and not to oppose abortion to me is inconsistent," West added. "To stand up for the vulnerable on one issue and then forget about them on another does not make sense."