Clinton Says He Won’t Appoint Anti-Abortion Justices

Seeking to gain political ground from the continuing controversy over abortion, presumptive Democratic nominee Bill Clinton warned Tuesday that the Supreme Court is “just one justice away from repealing the right to choose” and pledged to appoint only jurists who support abortion rights to the high court.

“I remember clearly what it was like” in the days before the 1973 Roe vs. Wade decision legalized abortion nationwide, Clinton said. He reminded supporters at a Washington rally of “the disasters in dark alleys, the uncertainty, the fear, the hiding.”

“As President, I’ll not make you worry about the one justice,” he said--alluding to the court’s razor thin 5-4 decision Monday not to overrule Roe.

Earlier in the day, during an appearance on NBC’s “Today” show, Clinton said that although he does not like litmus tests, he would use one for his high court nominees.

“I think that a judge ought to be able to answer a question in a Senate hearing, ‘Do you or do you not support the right to privacy, including the right to choose?’ ” he said. President Bush’s nominees have refused to answer that question.

Moreover, Clinton added, whomever he chooses as his running mate would have to support abortion rights.

At least one person who has been under consideration for the job, Pennsylvania Sen. Harris Wofford, has supported restrictions, including his state’s law that the high court ruled on Monday. Some Clinton aides have told reporters recently they believe Wofford’s chances of being selected for the job have dwindled because of the abortion issue.