Stephanopoulos failed to confront McCain with controversial Coburn remark that Obama cited when questioned about Ayers

Summary: On This Week, Sen. John McCain asserted that Sen. Barack Obama's reference to Sen. Tom Coburn when Obama was asked about William Ayers was an "incredible statement" that "borders on outrageous." However, at no point during the exchange did George Stephanopoulos point out the actual comments Coburn made that elicited Obama's reference to Coburn, much less confront McCain with the issue of whether he agreed with Coburn's comments.

During an interview with host George Stephanopoulos on the April 20 edition of ABC's This Week, Sen. John McCain asserted that Sen. Barack Obama's reference to Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) when Obama was asked at the April 16 Democratic presidential debate about former Weather Underground Organization member William Ayers was an "incredible statement" that "borders on outrageous." But at no point during the exchange did Stephanopoulos point out the actual comments Coburn made that elicited Obama's reference to Coburn, much less confront McCain with the issue of whether he agreed with Coburn's comments. Specifically, Coburn reportedly told the Associated Press in July 2004, "I favor the death penalty for abortionists and other people who take life." An April 21 New York Times article also did not mention Coburn's remarks, despite reporting that McCain said on This Week: "Then, the worst thing of all, that, I think, really indicates Senator Obama's attitude, is he had the incredible statement that he compared Mr. Ayers, an unrepentant terrorist, with Senator Tom Coburn, Senator Coburn, a physician who goes to Oklahoma on the weekends and brings babies into life."

When asked about his ties to Ayers during the April 16 debate, which Stephanopoulos co-moderated, Obama stated, "The fact is that I'm also friendly with Tom Coburn, one of the most conservative Republicans in the United States Senate, who, during his campaign, once said that it might be appropriate to apply the death penalty to those who carried out abortions. Do I need to apologize for Mr. Coburn's statements?"

According to a July 19, 2004, post on National Journal's The Hotline blog (via Nexis), Coburn subsequently told The Oklahoman:

My contention for the death penalty is, if you intentionally take innocent life, you ought to be open to the death penalty. That's what abortionists do. Do I think abortionists should be put to death right now? No. You can't do it. [Abortion] is legal. I don't think it should be legal.

From the April 20 edition of ABC's This Week with George Stephanopoulos:

STEPHANOPOULOS: Your allies are signaling that patriotism is going to be an issue in the fall. Here is Karl Rove in Gentleman's Quarterly magazine. He said, "There are Democrats, particularly blue-collar Democrats, who defect to McCain because they see McCain as a patriotic figure and they see Obama as an elitist who's looking down his nose at 'em, which he is." Do you have any doubt that Barack Obama shares your sense of patriotism?

McCAIN: I'm sure he's very patriotic, but his relationship with Mr. Ayers is open to question. And that --

STEPHANOPOULOS: Why?

McCAIN: Because, if you're going to associate and have as a friend and serve on a board and have a guy kick off your campaign that says he's unrepentant, that he wished he'd bombed more. And then, the worst thing of all, that I think really indicates Senator Obama's attitude, is he had the incredible statement that he compared Mr. Ayers, an unrepentant terrorist -- an unrepentant terrorist, with Senator Tom Coburn. Senator Coburn, a physician who goes to Oklahoma on the weekends and brings babies into life.

Comparing those two, I mean, that's not -- that's an attitude, frankly, that certainly isn't in keeping with the overall attitude of the American people --

STEPHANOPOULOS: Senator Obama said --

McCAIN: -- and it's very insulting to a great man, a great doctor, a great humanitarian. To compare him with a guy who says in -- after 2001, I wish we had bombed more? I had a reconciliation with the anti-war movement. One of the great experiences of my life was to get to know and love David Ifshin. I had a reconciliation with the Vietnamese, when we normalized relations. But how can you countenance someone who was engaged in bombings, which could have or did kill innocent people?

STEPHANOPOULOS: Senator Obama says he was eight years old when that was happening.

McCAIN: But he became friends with him and spent time with him, while the guy was unrepentant over his activities as a member of a terrorist organization, the Weathermen. And then to compare him with Dr. Tom Coburn who spends so much of his life bringing babies into this world -- that in my view is really -- it borders on outrageous.

STEPHANOPOULOS: He also pointed out that he and Mr. Ayers have a very loose relationship. They live in the same neighborhood; there was an organizing meeting many, many years ago, he says, in his house and he says, frankly, I don't agree with these comments that Mr. Ayers made.

McCAIN: Doesn't agree with them? Does he condemn them? Does he -- would he condemn someone who says that they're unrepentant and wished that they had bombed more, and compare him to a doctor, one of the great humanitarian, in my view, one of the greatest spokesperson for the rights of the unborn in America?

STEPHANOPOULOS: Well, you say he should condemn these comments.

McCAIN: Sure.

STEPHANOPOULOS: A lot of Senator Obama's allies and others say that you should condemn the comments of Reverend John Hagee, an evangelical pastor.

McCAIN: Oh, I do. And I did. I said that any comments that he made about the Catholic Church, I strongly condemn, of course.

STEPHANOPOULOS: Yet, you solicited and accepted his endorsement.

McCAIN: Yes, indeed, I did. And I condemned the comments that he made concerning the Catholic Church.

From the April 21 New York Times article:

Mr. Obama was also the target of attacks from Senator John McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee, who highlighted Mr. Obama's past relationship with William Ayers, a former member of the Weather Underground.

"If you're going to associate and have as a friend and serve on a board and have a guy kick off your campaign that says he's unrepentant, that he wished bombed more," Mr. McCain said on "This Week" on ABC. "Then, the worst thing of all, that, I think, really indicates Senator Obama's attitude, is he had the incredible statement that he compared Mr. Ayers, an unrepentant terrorist, with Senator Tom Coburn, Senator Coburn, a physician who goes to Oklahoma on the weekends and brings babies into life -- comparing those two -- I mean, that's not -- that's an attitude, frankly, that certainly isn't in keeping with the overall attitude."

—K.H.