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WASHINGTON — Rep. Randy Neugebauer, who apologized to a fellow House member for shouting "baby killer" during debate on the health care bill, is now running a campaign ad vowing to continue speaking out against abortion.
"You know what, I am never going to quit speaking on behalf of the unborn," the Texas Republican, flanked by his wife, says in the 80-second video posted on his campaign Web site.
"I will continue to speak with the same passion that I spoke last night, maybe in a little bit different forum, but still with the same intensity," he says. The video runs above the box "donate today."
Neugebauer, during the often-raucous debate leading up to passage of the health care overhaul bill Sunday night, yelled out "baby killer" while anti-abortion Democrat Bart Stupak of Michigan was speaking.
Just hours before the vote, Stupak reached an agreement with the White House under which President Barack Obama would issue an executive order confirming that the legislation would not allow federal funding of abortion. With that, Stupak and other anti-abortion Democrats voted for the bill, sealing its passage.
Neugebauer apologized to Stupak while saying he was attacking the agreement reached with the White House and not Stupak personally.
A similar outburst by fellow House Republican Joe Wilson of South Carolina last year paid dividends.
Wilson — who like Neugebauer, was relatively unknown before he shouted out "you lie" last September during an Obama speech to Congress on health care — raised $1.5 million in the week after the incident; his likely opponent in November received a similar amount. Wilson also became a favorite guest at fundraisers for other Republicans and appeared in national GOP fundraising efforts.
Chanda Allen, director of the Neugebauer's campaign committee, said the lawmaker was "humbled by the supportive phone calls and e-mails he has received from his constituents and from people all over America." She did not provide figures for money raised since Sunday.
But Ryan Rudominer, spokesman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, took issue with Neugebauer's actions, saying there was no line Republicans "won't cross if they think it will appeal to the far right."
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The video message can be found at http://randyforcongress.com/
