So it looks as if Rudy Giuliani's campaign aides think they've found a solution to the fact that he's repeatedly said he was for "partial birth" abortion in the past: Lie about it.

The other day, Rudy went on Fox News and told Sean Hannity that he was in favor of the late-term abortion ban provided it made an exception for the life of the mother. So we went and unearthed a bunch of quotes of Rudy back in 2000 in which he very clearly expressed his opposition to the ban. Those multiple quotes we unearthed can be found here and here.

Now those quotes have gained traction with a big news organization. Today's New York Times has a pretty decent piece on Giuliani's shifting abortion stands, saying:

On the issue of a disputed abortion procedure called “partial-birth abortion” by opponents, he told Mr. Hannity that a ban signed into law by President Bush in 2003, which the Supreme Court is reviewing, should be upheld. And on the issue of parental notification — whether to require minors to obtain permission from either a parent or a judge before an abortion — he said, “I think you have to have a judicial bypass,” meaning a provision that would allow a minor to seek court permission from a judge in lieu of a parent.

“If you do, you can have parental notification,” he said.

Both appear to be shifts away from statements he made while he was mayor and during his brief campaign for United States senator in 2000. Asked by Tim Russert on “Meet the Press” in 2000 if he supported President Bill Clinton’s veto of a law that would have banned the disputed abortion procedure, Mr. Giuliani said, “I would vote to preserve the option for women.” He added, “I think the better thing for America to do is to leave that choice to the woman, because it affects her probably more than anyone else.”

And on a 1997 candidate questionnaire from the National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League of New York, which Mr. Giuliani completed and signed, he marked “yes” to the question: Would you oppose legislation “requiring a minor to obtain permission from a parent or from a court before obtaining an abortion.”

Mr. Giuliani's campaign aides say his positions on abortion have not changed, and that his stand on what critics call partial-birth abortions has been mischaracterized, saying he opposed a ban only if it failed to include an exception to protect the life of the mother. But the ban vetoed by President Clinton did include such an exception.

Why, yes, it did indeed. If you're wondering why Rudy's aides would resort to such an easily debunked falsehood, it's probably because they have no other choice.

The fact that Rudy is pro-choice makes things tough enough for them; if religious conservatives learn that he was for partial birth abortion before he was against it, things will likely get even tougher. Now the remaining question is whether other big news orgs will hold Rudy accountable for his glaring flip-flop on the issue.