Hillary's slams on Obama's voting record - Exposed as bogus [View All]

Hillary slams Obama 'present' votes on abortion, gun laws

December 4, 2007
BY DAVE MCKINNEY Sun-Times Springfield Bureau Chief
White House hopeful Hillary Clinton sharpened her attacks on Democratic rival Barack Obama on Monday, criticizing him for failing to vote yes or no on a series of abortion and gun-control measures when he was in the Illinois Senate.

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One of Obama's "present" votes was on 1999 legislation that would have required teens 15 and older to be tried as adults for firing weapons on or near school grounds. He was among five African-American senators voting present.

"I'm for getting guns off the streets, but I'm not for treating these juveniles as adults," said state Sen. Rickey Hendon (D-Chicago), who voted "present" with Obama.

On the abortion bills, legislators who supported women's rights to the procedure were encouraged to vote "present" on bills that would have required parental notice before minors could obtain abortions and that would have barred what abortion foes call "partial-birth" abortions, a leading abortion-rights advocate said. The goal was to entice moderate Republicans and Democrats to also vote present, helping to defeat the bills.

"The poor guy is getting all this heat for a strategy we, the pro-choice community, did," said Pam Sutherland, president and CEO of the Illinois Planned Parenthood Council.

http://www.suntimes.com/news/politics/obama/679446,CST-NWS-obama04.article