Abortion Foe’s Assassination Quote Studied

The Secret Service wants to review an unaired TV interview with an abortion foe who said the assassination of President Clinton and Supreme Court justices could be justified for the cause.

Roy McMillan, head of the Christian Action Group in Jackson, Miss., said Monday that he was misquoted in a transcript of the interview he did for the satirical newsmagazine “TV Nation.” He said his remarks involved hypothetical questions and he does not advocate assassinations.

The Secret Service wants to examine the transcript and decide for itself, agency spokesman Eric Harnischfeger said from Washington.

“My simple statement was, ‘I could see the potential of abortion abolitionists assassinating people,’ ” McMillan said. “What I said is a far cry from saying I advocate or endorse this. Simply understanding the potential exists is not endorsing or advocating assassination, and that is what the report insinuates.”

A written transcript of the interview was released Saturday by Fox Broadcasting Co. in conjunction with an appearance by “TV Nation” creator Michael Moore at a meeting of the Television Critics Assn. in Pasadena, Calif.

According to the transcript, McMillan was asked: “Do you think it would be justifiable homicide to execute the President?”

“I think he’s probably in harm’s way by acknowledging and endorsing the killing . . . . It would probably be to me more justifiable to assassinate the Supreme Court judges,” he said in the transcript.