Why did George W. Bush let a stretch of Houston highway be named after a
local abortionist? That's the question Steve Forbes is asking of the Texas
governor, suggesting in a not-so-subtle fashion that Bush's pro-life
credentials are wanting.
In May 1997, Bush signed a bill passed by the Texas legislature naming a
portion of Texas 35 in honor of John B. Coleman, an abortionist whose son
was a Democrat serving in the statehouse. "Is George W. Bush committed to
the pro-life movement, or not?" asked Forbes last week.
Many Texas pro-lifers say he is committed, and don't hold Bush accountable
for the highway snafu. "We dropped the ball on that one," says Jim Graham,
executive director of the Texas Right to Life Committee. "That bill didn't
come on our radar screen until way too late. We should have given Bush a
heads up. But we didn't."
Graham says that his organization was too involved in parental-notification
and assisted-suicide legislation that spring to notice the Coleman bill.
When pro-lifers realized what had happened, Bush met with a group of them
and apologized. He then asked how he could advance the pro-life cause.
Joseph Graham, president of Texas Right to Life (and the father of Jim
Graham), says he suggested vetoing a pro-euthanasia bill that was then
sitting on the governor's desk. Bush said the hadn't seen it but would
review it carefully. A few days later, the bill was vetoed. "That was very
important," says Graham.
Texas Right to Life, the oldest and largest pro-life group in the state,
honored Bush earlier this year at a reception. The event was closed to the
media, and raised more than $50,000 for the group. "Bush gave a pro-life
speech that blew everybody out of the room," recalls Jim Graham.
Now if only he'll do that on the campaign trail.
