FactCheck.org spews myths about Gianna ad
FACT CHECK ORG. FAILURE!
STATEMENT FROM JILL STANEK, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR,
BORNALIVETRUTH.ORG
“FactCheck.org, a supposedly non-partisan organization, has produced an undocumented and misleading article to support its bias against the recent ad by Born AliveTruth.org featuring abortion survivor Gianna Jessen. The ad exposed Barack Obama for his radical opposition to the Born Alive Infants Protection Act as state senator.
“The anti-life bias of Jess Henig’s piece was evident from its title onward. "Born Alive’ Baloney" is based on unsubstantiated claims and half-truths that mislead and misinformed the public.
“For example, Ms. Henig repeated Obama’s contention that he would have voted for born alive legislation if he thought it did not threaten Roe v. Wade while failing to point out the fourth time Obama voted against Illinois’ Born Alive Act it was identical to the federal version that passed unanimously, 98-0, in the U.S. Senate. Even the pro-abortion group NARAL expressed neutrality on that version.
“Furthermore, Ms. Henig interviewed Gianna Jessen’s biographer, Jessica Renshaw, prior to publishing the FactCheck.org fabrication but failed to use any documentation Ms. Renshaw provided to support of all of Jessen’s statements in the ad.
“BornAliveTruth.org demands FactCheck.org to retract Henig’s article immediately in light of the many inaccuracies documented below. It is unprofessional and nonforthright that a supposedly non-partisan organization should propagate this kind of spin as ‘truth.’”
FactCheck.org Myths and Facts On Born Alive Ads:
FactCheck.org Myth #1, quoting FactCheck.org:
“A new ad by an anti-Obama group calling itself BornAliveTruth.org features Gianna Jessen, who says that she was "born 31 years ago after a failed abortion."
BornAliveTruth Fact #1: Gianna didn’t say she was born alive after a failed abortion. She was born alive after a failed saline abortion. See her medical records here. It is fact that Gianna was aborted and fact that she survived her abortion. It is not hearsay, it is not just what Gianna "says" happened or "according to her biographer," as Ms. Henig wrote. Even the sarcastic heading, "'Born Alive' (in quotes) Baloney" in two ways casts doubt: 1) on Gianna's having survived her abortion; and 2) the credibility of BornAliveTruth.org, which provided Henig documentation for each statement made in the ad.
FactCheck.org Myth #2, quoting FactCheck.org:
“In the ad, Jessen says that ‘if Senator Obama had his way, I wouldn't be here.’ She's wrong. Anyone born in Illinois under the same circumstances as Jessen (who was actually born in California) would have been protected under the state's law as it stood, with or without the legislation that Obama opposed.”
BornAliveTruth Fact #2: The ad obviously did not say “If Illinois law had its way…..” Henig totally missed the point. BornAliveTruth’s statement had nothing to do with Illinois law. It focused squarely on Barack Obama’s opposition to the Illinois Born Alive Infants Protection Act, his opposition to considering abortion survivors legal persons, and his opposition to providing them medical care. Did Henig read Obama’s 2001 and 2002 floor speeches from the Born Alive debate? Did she view Obama’s website? Here’s a quick example demonstrating that Barack Obama does not consider abortion survivors like Jessen deserving of legal/medical protection, from his website:
“Language Clearly Threatening Roe: (c) A live child born as a result of an abortion shall be fully recognized as a human person and accorded immediate protection under the law." This is irrefutable evidence of Obama's disregard for the postnatal personhood of abortion survivors.
FactCheck.org Myth #3, quoting FactCheck.org:
“For the record, Obama says he would have supported "born alive" legislation in Illinois if framed in a way that did not pose a threat to abortion rights granted by the Supreme Court in its Roe v. Wade decision.”
BornAliveTruth Fact #3: For the record, this is simply Obama’s spin. Obama voted four times against the Born Alive Infant Protection Act. See bills and roll calls here. As for his claim that the legislation in Illinois was framed in a way that posed a threat to abortion rights granted in Roe v. Wade, the legislation dealt with babies who were born alive, living and breathing and completely separated from their mothers. There was no threat whatsoever to Roe. The identical bill in the U.S. Senate (click here to see side by side comparisons) passed unanimously, 98-0, with even the most pro-abortion senators voting for it. The pro-abortion group NARAL even expressed neutrality on the bill. If the federal bill, again identical to the Illinois bill, had threatened Roe in any way, it would not have received such overwhelming support and it would have been sued by abortion supporters as unconstitutional, which has not happened in the six years since its passage.
FactCheck.org Myth #4, quoting FactCheck.org:
“The ad makes use of a rhetorical tactic known as a "‘pathetic appeal,’ meaning it employs pathos, an appeal to people's emotions. Jessen discusses her own history and calls for Obama to recognize her ‘right to live,’ putting an emotional face on a political issue. Calling up strong emotions is often a very effective way of swaying one's audience. But such ads ask the viewer to feel rather than to think. Telling a heart-rending story and telling the whole story aren't always the same thing.”
BornAliveTruth Fact #4: Gianna Jessen is the first known survivor of abortion to be featured in a political ad. She has an incredible story to tell and dismissing her story as a “pathetic appeal” is simply someone’s (pathetic) editorial opinion masquerading as supposedly thoughtful analysis. FactCheck says she didn’t tell the whole story - see facts above to debunk that claim. On Obama’s response ad:
FactCheck.org Myth #5: Failure to check whether Obama’s Born Alive votes were taken out of context, which Obama claimed in his ad.
BornAliveTruth Fact #5: Instead of actually checking and revealing that his votes were misrepresented, Hennig then failed to challenge Obama on his own distortions as he threw the word “infanticide” into his ad, never once mentioned by the BornAliveTruth.org ad, in a sentence taken completely out of context by Born Alive's 2003 senate sponsor.
FactCheck.org Myth #6: As for Sen. Obama's rebuttal ad, Hennig did point out two false statements Obama made in his rebuttal ad: attributing the ad to McCain and claiming McCain opposes abortion in the case or rape and incest. But Henig neglected to mention a third false statement: Obama denying his own voting record. His ad stated, “Accusing Obama of letting infants die? It's a despicable lie. . . Obama's always supported medical care to protect infants.”
BornAliveTruth Fact #6: That Senator Obama voted four different times to not give babies born alive medical care is a matter of public record. FactCheck’s remarkable failure to report that important fact can only be explained as simply carrying Obama spin and doing a disservice to the public.
My Comments: We need to take action! I plan to contact them and correct them on this information.
Here is the contact information from FactCheck.org:
FactCheck.org Annenberg Public Policy Center
320 National Press Building
Washington DC 20045
E-Mail:
Editor@FactCheck.org
Telephone: (Annenberg Public Policy Center)
(202) 879-6700
STATEMENT FROM JILL STANEK, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR,
BORNALIVETRUTH.ORG
“FactCheck.org, a supposedly non-partisan organization, has produced an undocumented and misleading article to support its bias against the recent ad by Born AliveTruth.org featuring abortion survivor Gianna Jessen. The ad exposed Barack Obama for his radical opposition to the Born Alive Infants Protection Act as state senator.
“The anti-life bias of Jess Henig’s piece was evident from its title onward. "Born Alive’ Baloney" is based on unsubstantiated claims and half-truths that mislead and misinformed the public.
“For example, Ms. Henig repeated Obama’s contention that he would have voted for born alive legislation if he thought it did not threaten Roe v. Wade while failing to point out the fourth time Obama voted against Illinois’ Born Alive Act it was identical to the federal version that passed unanimously, 98-0, in the U.S. Senate. Even the pro-abortion group NARAL expressed neutrality on that version.
“Furthermore, Ms. Henig interviewed Gianna Jessen’s biographer, Jessica Renshaw, prior to publishing the FactCheck.org fabrication but failed to use any documentation Ms. Renshaw provided to support of all of Jessen’s statements in the ad.
“BornAliveTruth.org demands FactCheck.org to retract Henig’s article immediately in light of the many inaccuracies documented below. It is unprofessional and nonforthright that a supposedly non-partisan organization should propagate this kind of spin as ‘truth.’”
FactCheck.org Myths and Facts On Born Alive Ads:
FactCheck.org Myth #1, quoting FactCheck.org:
“A new ad by an anti-Obama group calling itself BornAliveTruth.org features Gianna Jessen, who says that she was "born 31 years ago after a failed abortion."
BornAliveTruth Fact #1: Gianna didn’t say she was born alive after a failed abortion. She was born alive after a failed saline abortion. See her medical records here. It is fact that Gianna was aborted and fact that she survived her abortion. It is not hearsay, it is not just what Gianna "says" happened or "according to her biographer," as Ms. Henig wrote. Even the sarcastic heading, "'Born Alive' (in quotes) Baloney" in two ways casts doubt: 1) on Gianna's having survived her abortion; and 2) the credibility of BornAliveTruth.org, which provided Henig documentation for each statement made in the ad.
FactCheck.org Myth #2, quoting FactCheck.org:
“In the ad, Jessen says that ‘if Senator Obama had his way, I wouldn't be here.’ She's wrong. Anyone born in Illinois under the same circumstances as Jessen (who was actually born in California) would have been protected under the state's law as it stood, with or without the legislation that Obama opposed.”
BornAliveTruth Fact #2: The ad obviously did not say “If Illinois law had its way…..” Henig totally missed the point. BornAliveTruth’s statement had nothing to do with Illinois law. It focused squarely on Barack Obama’s opposition to the Illinois Born Alive Infants Protection Act, his opposition to considering abortion survivors legal persons, and his opposition to providing them medical care. Did Henig read Obama’s 2001 and 2002 floor speeches from the Born Alive debate? Did she view Obama’s website? Here’s a quick example demonstrating that Barack Obama does not consider abortion survivors like Jessen deserving of legal/medical protection, from his website:
“Language Clearly Threatening Roe: (c) A live child born as a result of an abortion shall be fully recognized as a human person and accorded immediate protection under the law." This is irrefutable evidence of Obama's disregard for the postnatal personhood of abortion survivors.
FactCheck.org Myth #3, quoting FactCheck.org:
“For the record, Obama says he would have supported "born alive" legislation in Illinois if framed in a way that did not pose a threat to abortion rights granted by the Supreme Court in its Roe v. Wade decision.”
BornAliveTruth Fact #3: For the record, this is simply Obama’s spin. Obama voted four times against the Born Alive Infant Protection Act. See bills and roll calls here. As for his claim that the legislation in Illinois was framed in a way that posed a threat to abortion rights granted in Roe v. Wade, the legislation dealt with babies who were born alive, living and breathing and completely separated from their mothers. There was no threat whatsoever to Roe. The identical bill in the U.S. Senate (click here to see side by side comparisons) passed unanimously, 98-0, with even the most pro-abortion senators voting for it. The pro-abortion group NARAL even expressed neutrality on the bill. If the federal bill, again identical to the Illinois bill, had threatened Roe in any way, it would not have received such overwhelming support and it would have been sued by abortion supporters as unconstitutional, which has not happened in the six years since its passage.
FactCheck.org Myth #4, quoting FactCheck.org:
“The ad makes use of a rhetorical tactic known as a "‘pathetic appeal,’ meaning it employs pathos, an appeal to people's emotions. Jessen discusses her own history and calls for Obama to recognize her ‘right to live,’ putting an emotional face on a political issue. Calling up strong emotions is often a very effective way of swaying one's audience. But such ads ask the viewer to feel rather than to think. Telling a heart-rending story and telling the whole story aren't always the same thing.”
BornAliveTruth Fact #4: Gianna Jessen is the first known survivor of abortion to be featured in a political ad. She has an incredible story to tell and dismissing her story as a “pathetic appeal” is simply someone’s (pathetic) editorial opinion masquerading as supposedly thoughtful analysis. FactCheck says she didn’t tell the whole story - see facts above to debunk that claim. On Obama’s response ad:
FactCheck.org Myth #5: Failure to check whether Obama’s Born Alive votes were taken out of context, which Obama claimed in his ad.
BornAliveTruth Fact #5: Instead of actually checking and revealing that his votes were misrepresented, Hennig then failed to challenge Obama on his own distortions as he threw the word “infanticide” into his ad, never once mentioned by the BornAliveTruth.org ad, in a sentence taken completely out of context by Born Alive's 2003 senate sponsor.
FactCheck.org Myth #6: As for Sen. Obama's rebuttal ad, Hennig did point out two false statements Obama made in his rebuttal ad: attributing the ad to McCain and claiming McCain opposes abortion in the case or rape and incest. But Henig neglected to mention a third false statement: Obama denying his own voting record. His ad stated, “Accusing Obama of letting infants die? It's a despicable lie. . . Obama's always supported medical care to protect infants.”
BornAliveTruth Fact #6: That Senator Obama voted four different times to not give babies born alive medical care is a matter of public record. FactCheck’s remarkable failure to report that important fact can only be explained as simply carrying Obama spin and doing a disservice to the public.
My Comments: We need to take action! I plan to contact them and correct them on this information.
Here is the contact information from FactCheck.org:
FactCheck.org Annenberg Public Policy Center
320 National Press Building
Washington DC 20045
E-Mail:
Editor@FactCheck.org
Telephone: (Annenberg Public Policy Center)
(202) 879-6700
Comments
Post a Comment
Comments are moderated and are published at the blogger's discretion.