Catholic bishops oppose Obama on abortion

BALTIMORE, Nov. 11 (UPI) -- U.S. Roman Catholic leaders should challenge President-elect Barack Obama on his support for abortion rights, the country's top bishop says.

Cardinal Francis George, the archbishop of Chicago and president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, said Monday in Baltimore that Catholic leaders should remain opposed to Obama's and the Democratic Party's so-called common good approach to the abortion issue, The New York Times reported.

Under the policy, Democrats continue to support legalized abortion but commit to strengthening social systems that encourage women to bring more unwanted or unplanned pregnancies to term.

"The common good can never be adequately incarnated in any society when those waiting to be born can be legally killed at choice," the Times quoted George as saying. "Common ground cannot be found by destroying the common good."