A gaffe, as Michael Kinsley famously explained it, is when a politician accidentally tells the truth.  And Hillary Clinton did exactly that on Meet the Press yesterday, violating the rulebook of Planned Parenthood to use language that obscures the nature of abortion, substituting words like “choice” and “fetal tissue mass” to mask the taking of a human a life.

Hillary’s sin?  Stating her view that “an unborn person does not have constitutional rights.”  Acknowledging that an “unborn person” is what is being killed, or terminated, as the abortion industry prefers to euphemize it, creates legal conceptual difficulties.  Bradford Richardson explains in the Washington Times:

Describing the fetus as a “person” or “child” has long been anathema to the pro-choice movement, which argues the terms misleadingly imply a sense of humanity.

In addition, the specific term “person” is a legal concept that includes rights and statuses that the law protects, including protection of a person’s life under the laws against homicide. Pro-choice intellectuals have long said that even if an unborn child is a “life,” it is not yet a “person.”

Guidelines issued by the International Planned Parenthood Federation discourage pro-choice advocates from using terms such as “abort a child,” instead recommending “more accurate/appropriate” alternatives such as “end a pregnancy” or “have an abortion.”

“‘Abort a child’ is medically inaccurate, as the fetus is not yet a child,” the guide reads. “‘Terminate’ a pregnancy is commonly used, however some people prefer to avoid this as terminate may have negative connotations (e.g., ‘terminator or assassinate’) for some people.”

The guidebook also advises against the terms “baby,” “dead fetus,” “unborn baby” or “unborn child” when discussing what it is that’s being aborted. Instead, it recommends the terms “embryo,” “fetus” and “the pregnancy.”

Here is a video of the exchange, followed by a transcript. Is it just me, or does Hillary look puffy in the face and depressed? The lighting is also just terrible. It is shocking to see a campaign that spends vast amounts of money on wardrobe, makeup, hair, and other elements of appearance letting her go on a major TVshow looking this bad. Or maybe that’s the best that can be done?

TODD: "You know, also this week you were pretty tough on Donald Trump on one of his positions on abortion. He had five different positions that we've counted up this week on abortion. I want to ask you, what is yours? Give me your straightforward position on the issue of abortion."

CLINTON: "My position is in line with Roe vs. Wade, that women have a constitutional right to make these most intimate and personal and difficult decisions based on their conscience, their faith, their family, their doctor. And that it is something that really goes to the core of privacy. And I want to maintain that constitutional protection under Roe vs. Wade as you know there is room for reasonable kinds of restrictions after a certain point in time. I think the life, the health of the mother are clear. And those should be included even as one moves on in pregnancy. -- [crosstalk] -- So I have been -- I've had the same position for many years."

TODD: "When or if does an unborn child have constitutional rights?"

CLINTON: "Well, under our laws currently, that is not something that exists. The unborn person doesn't have constitutional rights. Now, that doesn't mean that we don't do everything we possibly can in the vast majority of instances to, you know, help a mother who is carrying a child and wants to make sure that child will be healthy, to have appropriate medical support. It doesn't mean that, you don't do everything possible to try to fulfill your obligations. But it does not include sacrificing the woman's right to make decisions. And I think that's an important distinction that under Roe vs. Wade we've had enshrined under our constitution."