A former law colleague of likely Republican presidential candidate Fred Thompson told CNN Monday that Thompson worked in the 1990s for a group trying to loosen abortion restrictions.

In 1991, Barnes was asked by Judy DiSarno, then president of the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association, to suggest someone to help the group persuade the White House rescind a rule prohibiting abortion counseling at federally funded clinics.

Barnes said DiSarno was "only interested in finding a Republican to assist them," so he suggested that she call Thompson