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David Stokes at Townhall.com has pointed out an interesting paradox in President Obama’s thinking which he calls “selective righteousness“.  This paradox was on display at the Presidential press conference last week.

There are a couple of issues before the American people about which there is significant debate – enhanced interrogation (referred to by the press and liberals as “torture”) and abortion.  There is little debate that the US as a country, should not sanction or permit torture, nor that we should willingly take innocent human life.  In both of these issues, the difficulty is in the nuance – when is enhanced interrogation torture and when does human life begin?

On the question of enhanced interrogation, President Obama displays incredible certitude that enhanced interrogation techniques (waterboarding in particular)  are torture.  He stated:

“What I’ve said — and I will repeat — is that waterboarding violates our ideals and our values. I do believe that it is torture.  I don’t think that’s just my opinion; that’s the opinion of many who’ve examined the topic. And that’s why I put an end to these practices.

I am absolutely convinced it was the right thing to do, not because there might not have been information that was yielded by these various detainees who were subjected to this treatment, but because we could have gotten this information in other ways, in ways that were consistent with our values, in ways that were consistent with who we are.”

He acknowledges that there is a difference of opinion on this matter.  He acknowledges that that there may have been information obtained by using these techniques.  Members of the CIA have confirmed that information which has saved lives has been obtained through the use of enhanced interrogation techniques.  However, he pooh-poohs the assertion from a number of CIA officials that the use of these techniques was necessary to obtain the life-saving information by stating that “we could have gotten this information in other ways”, for which he provides no support.

Regarding abortion, when asked by Pastor Rick Warren (The Purpose Driven Life) at the Saddleback Forum, when a baby is entitled to human rights, Senator Obama stated:

“… answering that question with specificity, you know, is above my pay grade.

… One thing that I’m absolutely convinced of is that there is a moral and ethical element to this issue. And so I think anybody who tries to deny the moral difficulties and gravity of the abortion issue, I think, is not paying attention. So that would be point number one.”

He acknowledges there are differences of opinion on this issue, and he notes the difficulty of the issue.  Most importantly, he states that he does not know when human life begins.

So, in the matter of enhanced interrogation, you are dealing with very, very bad guys.  In this process they are made very uncomfortable but they are not hurt and there are no permanent effects.  It is proven there is a payoff from using these techniques in the form of information which can and has saved lives.  There is significant contention as to whether enhanced interrogation is torture.

In the matter of abortion, you are dealing with innocent life.  In this process the innocent life is terminated.  In the case of later term abortions, it has been proven that the baby feels pain before death.  There is significant contention as to whether abortion ends a human life.

So the question is this:

When faced with these two contentious issues, one of which involves inconveniencing bad, bad people but has been shown to have the potential to save lives, and the other involves innocent babies and is proven to be painful and ends lives, why is the President so certain that enhanced interrogation is torture and is willing to ban it, yet on the abortion issue, he acknowledges he does not know when human life begins, but he is willing and has taken several actions necessary to ensure that abortion is easily accessible and affordable both in the US and around the world?

Seems to me like he has his clarity on these two issues backwards.