Seymour Omits Reference to Barbara Bush

HOUSTON — California Sen. John Seymour, who is trying to highlight his support for abortion rights, drew the ire of GOP Chairman Richard N. Bond earlier this week--for trying to cite Barbara Bush in a short speech at the Republican Convention.

Seymour--who is locked in a battle for his Senate seat with Democrat Dianne Feinstein, an advocate of abortion rights--is trying to emphasize his own position.

Seymour’s prepared text included this phrasing: “I’m pro-choice, pro-family and pro-jobs. To say I’m entirely happy with our party platform would be untrue. I think our First Lady, Barbara Bush, is right.”

Mrs. Bush told interviewers last week that she believes such a “personal choice” has no place in a party platform. Her statement was interpreted in some quarters as an attempt to send a signal to abortion-rights supporters that, despite the rigid platform language, the White House is not so unyielding.

Seymour said that Bond pounced on him minutes before he was to deliver the speech at Monday morning’s session and demanded that he yank the sentence mentioning Mrs. Bush.