1.   Abortion rights proponents were on the defensive on a number of fronts this week.

2.   Abortion rights proponents proposed a countermeasure on Thursday that would have increased the penalties for attacking a pregnant woman, but not grant the fetus separate rights.

3.   Bush has cited Scalia and Thomas as his idea of what kind of justices should be appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court, and that worries abortion rights proponents.

4.   But Wednesday a compromised was reached that allows abortion rights proponents, like Weld and Wilson, to have their thoughts expressed in an appendix to the platform.

5.   For abortion rights proponents, it was a long time coming.

6.   In other campaign news Friday, abortion rights proponents endorsed Democratic attorney general candidate Jim Mattox.

7.   Supporters of the ban focused on the grisly nature of the procedure, while abortion rights proponents argued that politicians should not attempt to regulate private medical decisions.