Who's the Real Phony? Santorum on Abortion and Disability | Care2 ...

On Sunday Republican candidate contender Rick Santorum attempted to clarify his comments from the previous day about President Barack Obama?s ?phony theology,? as well as his remark that schools run by federal or state government are ??anachronistic.?

At a campaign stop in Columbus, Ohio, on Saturday, Santorum had said that it is parents? ?responsibility? to educate their children while comparing public schools to factories.?In a Sunday appearance on CBS News?s Face the Nation, Santorum defended his remarks. Noting that he and his wife home-schooled their children, Santorum said he did not oppose government financing of education but emphasized that??public education should be a dynamic process that?s locally run? with the parents ?in charge.?

Earlier in his campaign, Santorum had made similar remarks about public education when discussing early intervention. Santorum said that early childhood education programs are the government?s attempt to ?indoctrinate? children and that is why he is ?opposed all these early starts and pre-early starts, and early-early starts.?

Santorum?s censure of early childhood education ? a topic that few would criticize ? especially stands out as, in 2005 while he was in the US Senate, he helped to sponsor the?Combating Autism Act (CAA) which?specifically called for early childhood education in the form of early intervention, after the screening and diagnosis of young children for autism.

Indeed, early intervention and early childhood education service are near and dear to the hearts of families with autistic children and children with disabilities.?Public education is crucial to families of children with disabilities. It is due to the federal?Individuals with Disabilities Education Act that children like?my teenage autistic son Charlie are able to attend school; Charlie learns not only academic subjects, but skills of daily living and vocational training that will prepare him for his adulthood.?Without IDEA, families would be left on their own to educate children with disabilities, who very often require highly training teachers and therapists.

Santorum: Obama ?has a very bad record on the issue of abortion and children who are disabled?

Santorum and his wife are themselves parents of a child with disabilities. Their?3-year-old daughter, Bella, has a serious chromosomal disorder and would certainly qualify for early intervention services. Santorum referred to his daughter on Sunday in defending his criticism of a?requirement in the President?s health-care policy for insurance companies to cover prenatal testing; he positioned himself as a disability advocate in saying that ?free prenatal testing ends up in more abortions and therefore less care that has to be done, because we cull the ranks of the disabled in our society.? Noting that doctors who detected a condition such as Bella?s via prenatal testing would typically recommend abortion, Santorum said that

?I think the president has a very bad record on the issue of abortion and children who are disabled.?

It is good that Santorum said ?I think? because if he looked up the Obama administration?s position on disability issues, he would see that the?Affordable Care Act (ACA) specifically seeks to provide a number of benefits for individuals with disabilities, including ending?discrimination on the basis of pre-existing conditions and establishing?the?Community Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS) program, which is to help those with disabilities remain in their homes, communities and jobs through cash benefits to fund community support services.

Santorum?s remarks on abortion and public education suggest that he is more concerned about hypothetical yet-unborn children with disabilities, while overlooking ? indeed, brushing aside ? the?actual, day-to-day needs of individuals (and in particular adults) with disabilities.?Who?s the real phony here?

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Related Care2 Coverage

Santorum: Public Education Is ?Anachronistic?

What Would Rick Santorum Do For Autism? (video)

Santorum Opposes Early Childhood Education

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Source: http://www.care2.com/causes/whos-the-real-phony-santorum-on-abortion-and-disability.html

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