TAMPA, Fla. - Mitt Romney's sister promised that a ban on abortion was “never going to happen†under her brother's presidency, a reassurance to women that is at odds with the nominee's stated position on the issue.
“It's not his focus,†Jane Romney said at a talk here on Wednesday. “He's not going to be touching any of that.â€
Her remarks seemed to revive uncertainty about Mr. Romney's stance on abortion just 24 hours before he was scheduled to accept his party's presidential nomination.
Few issues have bedeviled Mr. Romney as much as abortion has. When he first ran for the Senate from Massachusetts in 1994, he said he supported abortion rights, a position he reversed in 2006 as h e prepared to make his first run for president.
Today, Mr. Romney says he favors overturning Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion.
Ms. Romney challenged Democrats' assertions that abortion rights would be in danger under Mr. Romney and his running mate, Paul D. Ryan.
“That's what women are afraid of, but that's conjured,†she said in remarks that were first reported in The National Journal. “Personally, I don't think abortion should be used as a football in the political arena.â€
A spokeswoman for Mr. Romney declined to comment.
Ms. Romney, an actress who lives in California, said her brother understood that if there were a federal ban on abortion, “women would take to the streets.â€
“Women fought for our choice,†she said. “We're not going to go back.â€
