Diatribune

Barack Obama, straight off the heels of the most impressive grassroots Q1 effort in history, released this searing statement today in response to the Supreme Court decision regarding partial birth abortion. And he did it in spectacular fashion, going much farther than simply saying he disagreed.

Obama is stepping up and tying this unpopular decision right around the conservative Supreme Court's neck!

Full statement below...

Senator Barack Obama:

I strongly disagree with today's Supreme Court ruling, which dramatically departs from previous precedents safeguarding the health of pregnant women. As Justice Ginsburg emphasized in her dissenting opinion, this ruling signals an alarming willingness on the part of the conservative majority to disregard its prior rulings respecting a woman's medical concerns and the very personal decisions between a doctor and patient. I am extremely concerned that this ruling will embolden state legislatures to enact further measures to restrict a woman's right to choose, and that the conservative Supreme Court justices will look for other opportunities to erode Roe v. Wade, which is established federal law and a matter of equal rights for women.

I, for one, am very encouraged by this statement. I think it puts to rest a lot of the (patently ridiculous)accusations that Obama is a "conservative."

Obama has been hitting hard at the conservatives, at the media, and at the escalators. And he's taking the fight right to the conservative movement. Which, is why he is drawing crowds like this in places like Georgia...

He's been right on the Iraqi Occupation since day 1.
Hes the only candidate saying we need to stop mountaintop removal.
He is willing to public finance the general election in 2008.

Now Barack Obama is taking the fight to the right!

Now is our chance to tell him...
Senator Obama, when you take the fight to the conservative movement...WE'VE GOT YOUR BACK!!!

Update: Thanks turneresq and 28th Democrat for simultaneously posting this, which I missed.

Obama also took some time to day to clean Bush's clock regarding Operation Iraqi Occupation.

After the President has repeatedly ignored the will of Congress and the American people, his own Secretary of Defense now recognizes that the only way to pressure the Iraqi government toward a political settlement is to make clear that American troops will not be in Iraq forever. President Bush has had a long history of ignoring the advice of his commanders on the ground, but let's hope that he follows the advice of his Defense Secretary so that we can finally begin the process of ending the war in Iraq in a responsible way."

Update 2: SimplyLeft has the numbers, which I was very curious about.

CBS News Poll. Jan. 18-21, 2007. N=1,168 adults nationwide. MoE =± 3%.

"What is your personal feeling about abortion? (1) It should be permitted in all cases. (2) It should be permitted, but subject to greater restrictions than it is now. (3) It should be permitted only in cases such as rape, incest and to save the woman's life. OR, (4) It should only be permitted to save the woman's life."

All Cases 31%
Greater Restrictions 16%
Rape, Incest, Woman's Life 30%
Woman's Life Only 12%

As SimplyLeft points out, 61% of those polled believe abortion should be permitted in all cases or cases of rape, incest or the woman's life.
__________________________