Democratic pro-lifers ask party to check pro-abortion language
The rigid pro-abortion views are turning voters away from the party, they said.
Union of Catholic Asian News (UCA) - Aug 17, 2020
By: UCA News reporter, Bangkok
More than 100 Democratic leaders have called for changes in the party platform to accept pro-lifers and heed their voice.
An Aug. 14 letter signed by 105 Democrats alleged that the party’s official platform is adopting an extreme position on abortion for the last 20 years.
The Democratic leaders, both current and retired, in the letter said that one in three Democrats are pro-life, and urged the party to welcome and respect the views of its 21 million pro-life members, reported Catholic News Agency.
The signatories include state legislators and nine Congressmen and three governors.
“In the U.S., pro-life Democrats have been a critical part of the coalition to expand voting rights, improve health care, and pass criminal justice reform,” the letter said.
“These accomplishments would not have been possible if the Democratic Party had in place a litmus test on abortion,” the letter said.
The leaders said the pro-abortion language in the party platform is out-of-touch with the Americans.
Though party leaders endorse legal abortion-on-demand during the pregnancy, polls suggest that 79 percent oppose this view, they said in the letter.
The rigid pro-abortion views are turning voters away from the party, they said.
“In 389 out of 435 Congressional districts, a majority of voters support a ban on abortion after 20 weeks,” they said.
“When Democratic leaders support late-term abortion, they push many voters into the arms of the Republican Party. Many people holding pro-life views are single-issue voters.”
Among the signatories is Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards, who was instrumental in signing a “heartbeat bill” into law in 2019.
U.S. Senator Mike Gabbard of Hawaii, father of U.S. Representative Tulsi Gabbard, whose support for limiting abortion is in stark contrast with other candidates in the fray for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination.
In 2000, the Democratic platform respected “the individual conscience of each American on this difficult issue.”
In 2004, the party stood for abortion to be “safe, legal and rare.” By 2016, the language changed from the platform, and the word “rare” disappeared, they said.
Pro-lifers in the Democratic Party alleged that the party has become increasingly extreme on abortion.
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