Yep, more or less the truth. With an emphasis on more.

Here's Russ Douthat, writing for Slate.com:

What I don't understand at all is Kmiec's position, which seems to be that the contemporary Democratic Party, and particularly the candidacy of Barack Obama, offered nearly as much to pro-lifers as the Republican Party does. I am sure that Kmiec is weary of being called a fool by opponents of abortion for his tireless pro-Obama advocacy during this election cycle, but if so, then the thing for him to do is to cease acting like the sort of person for whom the term "useful idiot" was coined, rather than persisting in his folly.

Those seeking a primer on the case against Kmiec's putatively pro-life position on Obama and abortion can begin here or here or here. Suffice to say that what he calls "outright lies and falsehoods" about Obama's views were, in fact, more or less the truth: The Democratic nominee ran on a record that can only be described as "very, very pro-choice," and his stated positions on abortion would involve rolling back nearly all the modest—but also modestly effective—restrictions that pro-lifers have placed upon the practice and/or appointing judges who would do the same. There may have been reasons for anti-abortion Americans to vote for Barack Obama in spite of his position that abortion should be essentially unregulated and funded by taxpayer dollars. But Kmiec's suggestion that Obama took the Democrats in anything like a pro-life direction on the issue doesn't pass the laugh test. (And nor, I might add, does his bizarre argument that because the goal of placing a fifth anti-Roe justice on the court is somehow unrealistic, the pro-life movement should pursue a far more implausible constitutional amendment instead.)

Read the entire post.

Comments

[Gail F]

"There may have been reasons for anti-abortion Americans to vote for Barack Obama in spite of his position that abortion should be essentially unregulated and funded by taxpayer dollars. But Kmiec's suggestion that Obama took the Democrats in anything like a pro-life direction on the issue doesn't pass the laugh test"

THANK YOU, Mr. Douthat. I know some people who voted for Obama despite of his positions on abortion because of other reasons they believed were more important or immediate. But to claim that Obama is somehow pro-life is just absurd and really deserves a big laugh. You can't have both.

[Ed Peters]

"...the thing for [Kmiec] to do is to cease acting like the sort of person for whom the term 'useful idiot' was coined..."

Exactly. Though I think it is too late for anything like a rehabilitation of DK to come about in genuine Catholic academic circles. Sure, God can forgive him his offense, but he will never, never, be trusted again by anyone who counts. Most folks get only chance to prove themselves in a foxhole. DK's time to do that has come and gone.