Bush out-manuevers Democrats on abortion restrictions

President Bush

From CNN White House Correspondent Major Garrett

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Bush moved Friday to ban the use of taxpayer funds for international abortion counseling and abortion services, short-circuiting a move in Congress to block the new administration's first act to restrict abortion rights overseas.

The president informed the U.S. Agency for International Development that he would issue an executive memorandum to revive the Mexico City Policy, a Reagan-era ban on the use of U.S. tax dollars overseas by organizations that perform abortions or provide abortion services.

President Clinton canceled the Mexico City Policy via executive order in his first week in office.

White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer said the move will prevent congressional opponents from attempting to legislatively block Bush's restoration of the policy. If the administration had issued a Contract Information Bulletin, the move would have taken more time and could have been subject to congressional challenge, Fleischer said.

Lawmakers who support abortion rights in both parties were intending to use new congressional powers to halt Bush's reinstatement of the Mexico City Policy, just as pro-business lawmakers rescinded Clinton's rule on repetitive stress injuries in the workplace.

The preemptive move by the White House now makes that impossible, Fleischer said.

See related sites about Politics

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.