Bush threatened over morning-after pill

Francis Harris

Religious conservatives have promised vengeance against President George W Bush for allowing America’s drug safety board to approve sales of the morning-after pill to women over 18.

The threat marked a vital stage in America’s so-called culture wars.

Asked about the pill decision, made by Dr Andrew von Eschenbach, the head of the Food and Drug Administration, Mr Bush said: “I support Andy’s decision.” That infuriated the president’s traditional supporters on the Christian Right, who regard the pill as a chemical abortion and blamed the president for the change in policy.

Stephen Peroutka, the chairman of Washington’s National Pro-Life Action Centre, said the president’s position was “a betrayal of the pro-life principles he claims to support”.

He and other Christian campaigners contrasted Mr Bush’s approach with his decision last month to veto a Bill allowing research using embryonic stem cells. Mr Bush cited “a moral boundary” in making that decision, the first veto of his presidency. Medical experts at the Food and Drug Administration, which oversees the safety of drugs for public consumption, judged the morning-after pill safe in a 28-0 vote three years ago.

Dr Susan Wood, a former head of women’s health at the FDA, said the political debate made little sense.

“This is a way to prevent unwanted pregnancy and thereby prevent abortion,” she said. “This should be something we all agree on.”