Why do I waste my time talking to nuts like Randall Terry?
The guy founded anti-abortion Operation Rescue in 1987, but the organization's current leaders want to have no part of his nonsense, at least not publicly. Terry's tactics are so over the top that he makes Pat Buchanan look and sound like Bill Maher.
Increasingly isolated from the right-wing mainstream (although none of the Republicans condemned him by name during the Sotomayor hearings, when Terry was outside leading a “baby-killing” protest), Terry now leads Operation Rescue Insurrecta Nex, an organization specialized in “warning” us that, if Obama's health care reform passes, the shit's going to hit the fan. Big time.
Terry is the poster boy for the usually white crowd that likes to warn us beforehand of impending cataclysms, and claim innocence afterwards if anything happens to Obama. That crowd has already killed at least two abortion doctors (John Britton, George Tiller), and there's another one on target (Leroy Carhart), but Terry and his Jesus thugs love to repeat “that's not what we mean” mantras and say bullshit prayers “for the safety of our President.”
Still, I didn't want to just pick up previously published accounts. I wanted to hear from Terry himself. Is this all part of a Liberal propaganda against him, or he is, in fact, that bad of a prick?
This is what he said.
Hi, this is Enrique Lopetegui, from the San Antonio Currentâ?¦
It's a weekly, did you say?
Yes.
Love them. Glad to talk.
I just wanted to confirm a few things I read about you. Did you send emails to your followers on how to attend town hall meetings, and in those emails you told them to “stir up some dust,” “be unreasonableâ?¦”
`interrupting` Yes, yes, yesâ?¦ Absolutely, yes.
Then, at a July press conference, did you warn of “random acts of violence” and “violent reprisals against those deemed guilty” in case Obama's plan passes?
Yeah. If the government of the United States forces people to pay for the murder of babies, there will be some people that will react. It's inevitable. It would be stupid for the government to think that they can force people to pay for murder and for people to not react.
Where does it say that? I haven't read any clause that makes it mandatory for people to pay for abortions under Obama's plan.
You have to be blind. As a journalist, you have to be blind. Everyone acknowledges that there is going to be abortion in this. Because if they talk about women's health care as determined by the Department of Health and Human Services, that means abortion.
But the money for abortion, supposedly, will come from the premium paid by those seeking an abortion, not by us. Where does it say that we'll all be paying for abortions?
I don't buy it. I absolutely don't buy it. It's a 1200-page bill. Everyone I talk toâ?¦ I just left a Congressman's office here in Asheville, North Carolina. He's pro-life. He said he won't vote for the bill because it'll fund abortions. Do you think all those pro-life Democrats who are opposed to `Speaker of the House Nancy` Pelosi are wrong?
I don't know. What I do know is that in a country famous for its political assassinations, it's a little dangerous toâ?¦
`interrupting` Listen, I don'tâ?¦ God forbid there are political assassinations. God forbid. I don't want that, I don't think anyone wants that.
But that's a sound bite, isn't it? Everybody is talking about “retribution” and “divine intervention,” and then they all wash their hands ifâ?¦
`talking over my question` No, no, noâ?¦ I will give you an answer, if you want one.
Ok.
I'm warningâ?¦ `inspired by my accent, he switches to Spanish` Estoy diciendo que tengan cuidado porque las personas queâ?¦ (“I'm saying â??be careful,' because people whoâ?¦”) Hay personas que aman a la vida, yâ?¦ (“There are persons who love life, andâ?¦”) ¿Cómo se dice “hate” (“How do you say hate?”)? I forgot the word.
Odio.
Odio! Yes. Hay personas que odian el aborto (There are persons who hate abortions). El aborto es asesinato. Abortion is murder. If you force people to pay for abortions there's going to be people who'll react!
So that's ok?
No! Not necessarily! But it's still going to happen!
What do you mean “not necessarily”? Is it justified?
I don't think so.
You don't think so??
I don't think it's justified, no. But I can warn them: if you do this, there will be ominous repercussions. It doesn't mean I want it to happen.
Well, they're getting close. Now there's a bunch of white guys with guns at Obama's rallies.
I know! I heard! Yeah.
If they were blacks or Mexican, the police wouldâ?¦
They could say, “Thank you for warning us, Mr. Terry. Evidently you were right.”
What do you think it would happen if Mexicans or blacks armed themselves and got out there to defend Obama's plan? Why is it that when white people do it it's “exercising our constitutional rights,” and when colored people do it it's trouble?
Listen: I didn't ask anyone to do that. I made a prediction early on that, if they tried to force people to pay for dead babies, this stuff like this would happen. I don't know who these people are, but I know America. I've been fighting against abortion for 25 years. I know the country. There is no way that you can the have government mandate the murder of the innocent and for there to be no ominous repercussions.
Can you email me the portion of the bill that says “there will be abortions and we're all going to pay for them”? I'm not saying there won't be abortions, but not because of anything in Obama's bill. I mean, there were abortions under Bush too.
But not paid for with federal money.
And these are not paid for with federal money either! The bill specifically blocks federal funds for abortions and clearly state that the money will come from the premiums paid by abortions seekers! Can you email me the portion that supports your theory?
Wait, wait, waitâ?¦ Listen: you should call all the pro-life Democrats who are saying that `federal funds for abortions are` going to be on the bill. Are they all wrong? `For the record: I never got an on-the-record return call or email from a Senator or Congressmember, Republican or Democrat, or his/her office, ever, and God knows I've tried`
But they're not saying that, theyâ?¦
Yes they are!
From what I've read, their main concern is financial, that's it's going to be expensive, but I don't see any Democrats talking about “baby killings.” Only Republicans say that.
No, no, noâ?¦ It's a shell game. `Republican Senator Orrin` Hatch specifically asked `Democratic Senator` Feinstein for language that said “no money will be issued to pay for abortions.” She said that no, she couldn't do it. `At the time of this posting, Senator Feinstein's office hadn't replied to the Current's request for comments` Those Congressmen went to Pelosi and said “We want a promise that this money will not be used to pay for abortions.” She said no! They're lying sons of bitches. They're miserable liars. They're baby-killing evil people. If you go to overturnroe.com, there's a letter I wrote to Congress, and hundreds and hundreds of people sent this letter to their Congressman, warning them. `The letter reads “I beg you to warn your fellow Senators of the convulsions they will be unleashing on our country if they proceed in this folly,” and that's the good part`
I know what you've written. But my point isâ?¦
(interrupting) No, I do disagreeâ?¦
Let me finish!
I'm sorryâ?¦
I insist: the bill today says that only those seeking an abortion will pay for it.
I heard it, but I don't believe it. Mathematically it's not possible.
Why not?
If I woman wants a $4,000 or $5,000 abortion to kill her baby, all that money has been set aside in an account for dead babies?
If you're a 30-year-old woman who has been paying premiums for yearsâ?¦
Two months, three months.
What?
This would go into effect immediately! I believe Democratic pro-life Congressmen, and I've read the transcript of what Hatch said, and Feinstein would not agree to make it explicit that “none of the money would be used to pay for abortions.” And they wouldn't do it, because they intend to kill babies with our money.
So, if tomorrow anything happens to Obama, you're just going to say, “Hey, I didn't mean that!”?
God forbid. We pray: “Please God, keep President Obama safe. Please, God.”
Do you honestly mean that?
Yeah! Absolutely! Are you kidding me? He's the President of the United States! The worst thing that could happen to this country would be for some harm to come to him. Are you crazy?
I don't buy it, becauseâ?¦
Now you're full of shit! Now I have to go. Call me if you need anything else.
Click!
In regards to the “$4,500-$5,000 —abortion” price tag, Yvonne Gutiérrez, Vice President of Community Affairs for Planned Parenthood in San Antonio, told the Current “That is completely untrue.”
“An abortion procedure will cost anywhere between, I would say, $350 and $600, and that is for first trimester care,” she said, adding that the argument that health-care reform will force all of us to pay for abortions “is untrue, it is completely false and should be taken off the table immediately. More than 60% of existing plans have provisions for abortion, for example, if the life of the mother is at risk, the fetus is in dangerâ?¦ The new health care reform will have no changes to existing provider's plans. That's why these people are saying â??we're going to pay for abortions.' That's not true. You can call `Texas Democratic U.S. Representative` Charlie González's office, because he worked on the bill with the Energy and Commerce committee.” The office of Congressman González hadn't replied to our inquiry at the time of this posting.
A couple of days after Randall hanged up on me, I called him back to ask for a photo and to ask him again for the famous “Hatch/Feinstein transcript.” Someone who sounded like a half-asleep/sedated Terry hanged up the phone. I called back and left a message. I'm still waiting for his reply.
