Opinion Pieces, Editorials Comment On Obama's Notre Dame Commencement Speech

Main Category: Abortion
Also Included In: Women's Health / Gynecology;  Sexual Health / STDs;  Public Health
Article Date: 25 May 2009 - 3:00 PDT

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Several newspapers recently published opinion pieces and editorials regarding President Obama's commencement address at the University of Notre Dame on Sunday. Summaries appear below.

~ Austin Hill, U.S. News and World Report: A "careful look" at the controversy surrounding Notre Dame's invitation to Obama "suggests that ... the Catholic Church in America is neither communicating very clearly to the broader American society, nor is it communicating very clearly among its own members," columnist Hill writes. Hill asks, "[I]f Catholics need to criticize a political figure even when he is 'right' on the abortion issue, can they, or should they, praise a political figure even when he is 'wrong' on the abortion issue" but "right" on other moral issues? He adds, "The bishops need to answer this question, in no uncertain terms, and they need to do so with clarity" (Hill, U.S. News and World Report, 5/20).

~ William Saletan, Slate: Abortion is "the classic multidimensional issue," and "Obama's acknowledgment of the issue's complexity is important for two reasons," author and Slate correspondent Saletan writes. The first reason is that Obama is "dropping the pretense of a conclusive answer," and the second is that "even strategic symbolic dialogue can bring unforeseen consequences," Saletan writes (Saletan, Slate, 5/20).

~ Julia Duin, Washington Times: A number of things "did not seem right" about Obama's speech,"[e]specially about 'common ground' on an issue that has none" -- abortion rights, columnist Duin writes. Duin asks, "Does this 'common ground' idea really work? On peripheral issues, yes. On life-and-death issues, no." According to Duin, "It seems that one side of the debate is always told it needs to move to the center on a given issue, while the other side is told it needs to stand firm." She adds that Obama's speech highlighted "a huge disconnect," possibly "that some issues don't have a common ground" (Duin, Washington Times, 5/21).

~ Marybeth Hicks, Washington Times: In his speech, Obama "shared a world view that people of all strongly held beliefs must consider: While we will never agree on certain matters of principle, we should still find ways to lift up mankind through cooperation and service and love," columnist Hicks writes. Hicks says that she would like "Obama to send a copy of that speech to Harry Knox" -- director of the religion and faith program at the Human Rights Campaign and a member of Obama's White House Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships -- because Knox "must learn to respect the right of Catholics and of our church to hold principled beliefs of our own" (Hicks, Washington Times, 5/20).

~ Dallas Morning News: Obama "[o]nce again ... displayed his gift for making his most strident opponents marginalize themselves" by "com[ing] across as the kind of politician who genuinely sees those who disagree with him as opponents, not enemies," a Morning News editorial says. "When a strong abortion-rights supporter like Obama is not only honored at the nation's most important Catholic university (in terms of cultural symbolism), but enthusiastically embraced, times are changing," it adds (Dallas Morning News, 5/18).

~ Kansas City Star: Most Americans "have more in common with the 12,000 graduates, families and friends who were inside the Notre Dame arena than with the demonstrators outside" and "are willing to listen to different views and ... seek a middle ground that would lessen the [abortion] issue's grip on political discourse," a Star editorial states. It continues, "Instead of ostracizing those of different views, Americans would do better to follow the path suggested by Obama: Reduce unintended pregnancies, make adoption more available and provide 'care and support for women who do carry their children to term'" (Kansas City Star, 5/18).

~ Baltimore Sun: Obama "met the challenge head-on" of speaking at Notre Dame amid the protests through "his faith in the ability of reasonable people to disagree and still find common ground on the issues that matter to them," a Sun editorial says. "Like many of the world's intractable disputes, there's no compromise that is likely to completely satisfy everyone," the editorial says, adding that "Obama's appeal for civility and a respectful discussion of the issue showed his recognition of a practical reality, and to his credit he did it without at all minimizing the difficulty of the task" (Baltimore Sun, 5/19).

~ Houston Chronicle: "There are few subjects in American life as hard to calmly discuss and publicly debate as abortion," and "[a]dvocates on both sides often demonize opponents in zealously defending either the rights of the unborn or the women who carry them," a Chronicle editorial states. However, Obama noted in his speech that "being pro-choice does not imply a belief that abortion is a desirable end in itself," the editorial continues, concluding that "activists should heed the president's call to treat each other as fellow Americans with honest differences of conscience on a very difficult and divisive issue" (Houston Chronicle, 5/19).

~ Philadelphia Inquirer: The commencement address "has just as much promise to provide an appropriate course for this nation on abortion as Obama's pre-election speech here did on race relations," an Inquirer editorial says. It is "good to see the president trying to move the ball" by saying that "we begin by talking to, not at, each other," the editorial adds (Philadelphia Inquirer, 5/21).

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