OSCEOLA, Iowa (AP) _ Republican Rick Perry is shifting his opposition to abortion, saying he opposes it even after rape or incest. Perry on Tuesday told potential caucus-goers in Iowa that he has changed his mind. Previously, he believed abortion was acceptable in cases of rape, incest or when the mother’s life is at risk. Now, he says abortion in all forms should be prohibited. Perry told a pastor who asked him about his views that, in his words, “you’re seeing a transformation.” Perry says he recently watched former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee’s documentary about abortion. He says he met a woman in the film and that she told him she was the result of rape and that her life has worth. Perry says that encounter led him to rethink his position.
OSCEOLA, Iowa (AP) _ Republican Rick Perry is challenging his exclusion from Virginia’s primary ballot. The Texas governor’s presidential campaign filed a lawsuit Tuesday in federal court in Virginia in an attempt to get his name on Virginia’s March 6 primary ballot. Perry failed to collect the required 10,000 signatures. At present, Mitt Romney and Ron Paul are the only GOP presidential candidates who have qualified for Virginia’s ballot. Newt Gingrich also failed to gather enough signatures. In explaining the lawsuit, Perry campaign spokesman Ray Sullivan says Virginians should be able to choose among all the candidates _not just two. Sullivan says Virginia’s ballot access rules are among the most onerous in the country and that the 10,000-signature requirement is unrealistic.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)