Pope Benedict XVI's agreement that Roman Catholic politicians in Mexico City who voted to legalize abortion should be denied the rite of Communion could have an effect on the 2008 presidential race in the United States.The pontiff's comments put five of seven Catholic candidates at odds with their church.
Reporters aboard the pope's flight to Mexico City on Wednesday asked if he supported the decision by bishops there to excommunicate politicians who had voted to legalize abortion in the first trimester.
The pope responded that excommunication for those promoting abortion is "nothing new, it's normal, it wasn't arbitrary. It is what is foreseen by the Church's doctrine."
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