A new Obama ad airing in only one state, Virginia, claims that Romney would ban abortions and uses only part of a quote for proof. The ad cuts to a 2007 debate moderated by Anderson Cooper in which all of the primary candidates are asked if they would sign a bill overturning Roe v. Wade. The ad cuts off after Romney said “I’d be delighted to sign that bill.” However, that was not the full quote. A full transcript is below:
QUESTIONER: Hello, my name is AJ. I’m from Millstone, New Jersey. I would all of the candidates to give an answer on this. If hypothetically, Roe v. Wade was overturned, and the Congress passed a federal ban on all abortions and it came to your desk, would you sign it? Yes or no?
[…]
COOPER: Governor Romney?
ROMNEY: I agree with Senator Thompson, which is we should overturn Roe v. Wade and return these issues to the states.
ROMNEY: I would welcome a circumstance where there was such a consensus in this country that we said, we don’t want to have abortion in this country at all, period. That would be wonderful. I’d be delighted.
COOPER: The question is: Would you sign that bill?
ROMNEY: Let me say it. I’d be delighted to sign that bill. But that’s not where we are. That’s not where America is today. Where America is is ready to overturn Roe v. Wade and return to the states that authority. But if the Congress got there, we had that kind of consensus in that country, terrific.