[h=4]Tony Gutierrez/ASSOCIATED PRESS[/h] Governor Rick Perry lamented that Wendy Davis, who is pro-choice, didn’t 'learn from her own example' of overcoming the odds as a teenage mother.
Wendy Davis is fighting back after Texas Gov. Rick Perry lamented that the pro-choice lawmaker failed to learn "from her own example" as a teenage mother.
She said Friday that Perry "demeaned the office that he owns" when he pointed to Davis as a model of how someone born into the "worst of circumstances" can still succeed.
Perry's comments came after Davis' nearly 11-hour filibuster Tuesday to prevent a vote on anti-abortion legislation in the state legislature.
Speaking to the National Right to Convention in Dallas, Texas Thursday, Perry said that Davis of all people should be against abortion because she was raised by a single mother.
"Who are we to say that children born into the worst of circumstances can't grow to live successful lives?" he told the gathering of pro-life supporters.
RELATED: SNEAKERS WORN BY TEXAS DEMOCRAT DURING EPIC FILIBUSTER GETTING RAVE REVIEWS ONLINE
"She was the daughter of a single woman, she was a teenage mother herself."
Praising her for graduating from Harvard Law School and ascending to the Texas Senate, Perry called it "unfortunate that she hasn't learned from her own example."
"Every life must be given a chance to realize its full potential and that every life matters."
Davis blasted the Gov., saying he "shamefully attacked me and my family," in a message to supporters.
“The governor’s comments are without dignity and tarnish the high office that he holds.”
[h=4]Eric Gay/ASSOCIATED PRESS[/h] [h=4]Sen. Wendy Davis, who filibustered to prevent a vote on anti-abortion legislation in the state legislature, fought back against Gov. Perry’s personal attack, saying Perry ‘demeaned the office that he owns.’[/h]
The 50-year-old said though she chose to have her daughter, she doesn't want to put herself "in the shoes of another woman confronting a difficult personal choice."
"It really isn't for him to make statements like that," she said Friday during an interview on MSNBC's "Morning Joe."
The show's host, Joe Scarborough, referred to Perry's comment as a "backhanded compliment."
Perry’s office defended his statement, saying Friday that he was “praising Sen. Davis for her success despite coming from difficult circumstances.”
RELATED: TEXAS POL BECOMES RISING STAR AFTER FILIBUSTER
Davis has shared stories of her challenging upbringing, helping her mother, who only had a sixth grade education, raise her three younger siblings.
The Fort Worth native began “working after school at 14 to help support her single mother and three siblings,” the bio on her website read.
She herself married as a teenager and had a daughter, Amber, at the age of 19 but was divorced one year after her marriage.
She enrolled in community college and then transferred to Texas Christian University, having earned a full scholarship.
She is the first person in her family to graduate from college.
She later graduated from Harvard Law School and worked as a an attorney in Texas before entering politics in 1999.
She now has two daughters, Amber and Dru.
[email protected]
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Wendy Davis is fighting back after Texas Gov. Rick Perry lamented that the pro-choice lawmaker failed to learn "from her own example" as a teenage mother.
She said Friday that Perry "demeaned the office that he owns" when he pointed to Davis as a model of how someone born into the "worst of circumstances" can still succeed.
Perry's comments came after Davis' nearly 11-hour filibuster Tuesday to prevent a vote on anti-abortion legislation in the state legislature.
Speaking to the National Right to Convention in Dallas, Texas Thursday, Perry said that Davis of all people should be against abortion because she was raised by a single mother.
"Who are we to say that children born into the worst of circumstances can't grow to live successful lives?" he told the gathering of pro-life supporters.
RELATED: SNEAKERS WORN BY TEXAS DEMOCRAT DURING EPIC FILIBUSTER GETTING RAVE REVIEWS ONLINE
"She was the daughter of a single woman, she was a teenage mother herself."
Praising her for graduating from Harvard Law School and ascending to the Texas Senate, Perry called it "unfortunate that she hasn't learned from her own example."
"Every life must be given a chance to realize its full potential and that every life matters."
Davis blasted the Gov., saying he "shamefully attacked me and my family," in a message to supporters.
“The governor’s comments are without dignity and tarnish the high office that he holds.”
The 50-year-old said though she chose to have her daughter, she doesn't want to put herself "in the shoes of another woman confronting a difficult personal choice."
"It really isn't for him to make statements like that," she said Friday during an interview on MSNBC's "Morning Joe."
The show's host, Joe Scarborough, referred to Perry's comment as a "backhanded compliment."
Perry’s office defended his statement, saying Friday that he was “praising Sen. Davis for her success despite coming from difficult circumstances.”
RELATED: TEXAS POL BECOMES RISING STAR AFTER FILIBUSTER
Davis has shared stories of her challenging upbringing, helping her mother, who only had a sixth grade education, raise her three younger siblings.
The Fort Worth native began “working after school at 14 to help support her single mother and three siblings,” the bio on her website read.
She herself married as a teenager and had a daughter, Amber, at the age of 19 but was divorced one year after her marriage.
She enrolled in community college and then transferred to Texas Christian University, having earned a full scholarship.
She is the first person in her family to graduate from college.
She later graduated from Harvard Law School and worked as a an attorney in Texas before entering politics in 1999.
She now has two daughters, Amber and Dru.
[email protected]
CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO