Newt Gingrich vs. Mitt Romney: Former House Speaker Takes Aim At GOP Candidate's Abortion Record

Newt Mailer Hits Rival For Supporting 'Abortion Pills'

Newt Gingrich is attacking Mitt Romney's past support for abortion rights in a mailer blanketing South Carolina households.

The mailer, obtained by CNN, highlights Romney's "pro-abortion record" as governor of Massachusetts. The mailer says that he "expanded access to abortion pills." However, in October 2005 Romney signed a bill calling for expanded access for low-income people to family-planning services including the morning-after pill, which is emergency contraception designed to prevent pregnancy, as opposed to the abortion pill RU-486.

The mailer also repeats claims made in an ad that Gingrich is airing in the state over his abortion record. Factcheck.org said that most of them are false.

Campaigning for governor of Massachusetts in 2002, Romney said he would "preserve and protect a woman's right to choose." He said that he supported state-funded abortions for low-income women in a 2002 Planned Parenthood questionnaire.

In a 2005 Boston Globe op-ed, Romney declared himself pro-life after vetoing a bill in July that would have made emergency contraception available without a prescription and required hospitals to offer it to rape victims.

While Romney has often defended himself against charges of flip-flopping, he has admitted that he changed his mind on abortion.

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