NY Times again repeated falsehood that Casey was denied speaking slot at '92 Dem convention "because of his anti-abortion views"

Summary: The New York Times asserted that Robert P. Casey Sr., "then Pennsylvania's governor, was blocked from speaking at the 1992 convention because of his anti-abortion views." But other Democrats who opposed abortion rights spoke at the 1992 convention and at every convention since then, so Casey's opposition to abortion rights could not have been the sole reason he was not given a speaking role.

In an August 24 New York Times article, reporter Michael Powell wrote that "Sen. Barack Obama has invited Senator Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, an abortion-rights opponent to give a convention speech." Powell then falsely asserted: "Mr. Casey's father, then Pennsylvania's governor, was blocked from speaking at the 1992 convention because of his anti-abortion views." As Media Matters for America has repeatedly documented, other Democrats who opposed abortion rights spoke at the 1992 convention and at every convention since then, so Casey's opposition to abortion rights could not have been the sole reason he was not given a speaking role. Further, the Times itself reported in an August 1, 1996, article that White House officials "have always said that had [Casey] not declined to endorse Mr. [Bill] Clinton in 1992, he would have been allowed to speak to the convention." Michael Crowley of The New Republic similarly reported in 1996: "According to those who actually doled out the 1992 convention speaking slots, Casey was denied a turn for one simple reason: his refusal to endorse the Clinton-Gore ticket."

Times reporter John Broder also repeated the falsehood in an August 7 article, writing: "Sixteen years ago, the Democratic Party refused to allow Robert P. Casey Sr., then the governor of Pennsylvania, to speak at its national convention because his anti-abortion views, stemming from his Roman Catholic faith, clashed with the party's platform and powerful constituencies."

—T.A.