Amid the controversy over Republican Rep. Todd Akin's comments on "legitimate rape" and abortion comes word that the Republican Party platform will again call for outlawing abortion without specifying an exception for cases of rape or incest.
According to draft language of the platform obtained by CNN, the GOP will voice its support for a "human life amendment" to the Constitution.
"Faithful to the 'self-evident' truths enshrined in the Declaration of Independence, we assert the sanctity of human life and affirm that the unborn child has a fundamental individual right to life which cannot be infringed," the draft platform states. "We support a human life amendment to the Constitution and endorse legislation to make clear that the Fourteenth Amendment's protections apply to unborn children."
The source who provided the information to CNN cautioned that the platform is still in draft form and will have to be approved by the full platform committee and by delegates to next week's Republican convention in Tampa.
The language is similar to that adopted by the GOP in 2000, 2004, and 2008.
Akin, who is seeking a U.S. Senate seat from Missouri, sparked outrage on Sunday by declaring that "if it's a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down" — therefore, rape victims do not require legal access to abortions.
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney sharply criticized Akin, calling his remarks "offensive" and "inexcusable." And a spokeswoman for his campaign said a Romney-Ryan administration "would not oppose abortion in instances of rape."
Romney's vice-presidential running mate, Rep. Paul Ryan, has opposed the rape exception in the past but now appears to be deferring to Romney's view on the issue.
