Fred Thompson Lobbied For National Family Planning And Reproductive Health Association, Group Says

Main Category: Women's Health / Gynecology
Also Included In: Sexual Health / STDs
Article Date: 11 Jul 2007 - 3:00 PDT

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Former Sen. Fred Thompson (Tenn.), who is expected to announce his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination, in 1991 lobbied for the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association, which supports abortion rights, according to a document and several people familiar with the issue, the Los Angeles Times reports. Former NFPRHA President Judith DeSarno, said the group in 1991 hired Thompson, who was working for the lobbying firm Arent Fox, to urge the George H.W. Bush administration to withdraw or relax a federal policy on funding restrictions for groups providing abortion-related services (Finnegan, Los Angeles Times, 7/7).

The so-called "Mexico City" policy bars U.S. funding from going to international groups that support abortion, even with their own money, through direct services, counseling or lobbying activities. The policy was originally implemented by former President Reagan at a population conference in Mexico City in 1984, removed by former President Clinton and reinstated by President George W. Bush during the first days of his presidency (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 6/22).

According to the Times, minutes from a NFPRHA board meeting on Sept. 14, 1991, state that the group had "hired Fred Thompson Esq., as counsel to aid us in discussions with the administration" on the Mexico City policy. Thompson spokesperson Mark Corallo denied that Thompson worked for the group. He said, "There's no documents to prove it, there's no billing record, and Thompson says he has no recollection of it, says it didn't happen."

Former Rep. Michael Barnes (D-Md.) -- who worked with Thompson at the lobbying firm -- said that DeSarno had asked him to recommend someone to do the lobbying work and that he had suggested Thompson. Barnes said that he talked with Thompson while he was lobbying for the group and that he spoke with DeSarno "about the fact that she was very pleased with the work that he was doing." Barnes said it is "absolutely bizarre" that Thompson would deny lobbying for NFPRHA (Los Angeles Times, 7/7).

DeSarno said Thompson gave her regular updates about his work, and he met with her in person on two occasions. DeSarno added that at one meeting, Thompson said he had spoken with John Sununu, former White House chief of staff, about the issue (Becker/Kirkpatrick, New York Times, 7/7). Sununu said he did not remember talking with Thompson about the Mexico City policy, adding, "I don't think that ever happened. In fact, I know that never happened" (Los Angeles Times, 7/7).

Reaction
According to the Los Angeles Times, the reports that Thompson lobbied on behalf of NFPRHA have "cast a shadow" on his efforts to gain support from social conservatives. Some Republicans have urged caution in evaluating Thompson. David Carney, a New Hampshire-based Republican strategist, said the report "will hurt, particularly because conservatives have been dying for a champion to be in the [antiabortion] arena for them," adding, "People who really believe in the pro-life cause will not be happy."

Anne Hendershott, author of "The Politics of Abortion," said the report likely would not hurt Thompson's campaign as long as antiabortion advocates focus on his current position (Hook, Los Angeles Times, 7/8). Thompson last month addressed the National Right to Life Committee's annual convention in Kansas City in a taped, three-minute speech. In his message, Thompson noted that he received NRTL's endorsement when he ran for the Senate in 1994. He added, "I've been with you ever since, and you've been with me ever since" (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 6/18).

Giuliani Says He Supports Embryonic Stem Cell Research With 'Strict' Limits
In related news, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who is running for the Republican presidential nomination, on Friday said he supports government funding on human embryonic stem cell research with "very, very strict limits," the AP/Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports. Giuliani's comments on embryonic stem cell research came in response to a question about President George W. Bush's recent veto of a bill (S 5) that would have allowed federal funding for research using stem cells derived from human embryos originally created for fertility treatments and willingly donated by patients.

"The strict limits should be that life is not created for the purpose of destroying life and just for the purpose of scientific experimentation," Giuliani said (Bynum, AP/Minneapolis Star-Tribune, 7/6). During a debate in May, Giuliani offered support for federal funding of embryonic stem cell research if it is "not creating life in order to destroy it, as long as we're not having human cloning, and we limit it to that" (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 5/4).

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