Abortion rights -- Another trial balloon for betrayal?

[Meeker Morgan]

Democrats `re-thinking' their stance on abortion
http://www.centredaily.com/living/story/183360.html

Washington --
In sometimes subtle ways, Democratic party leaders and political professionals are grappling with how to address abortion, an internal debate that turns on questions of emphasis, political positioning and how far to go in accepting as a public policy goal the view that abortion is a moral tragedy to be avoided.

While there is no serious discussion of moving away from the party's long-standing support of abortion rights, some moderates have pressed the party to more aggressively press a message that Democrats would work to reduce the number of abortions. But the party's pro-abortion rights constituency is wary of too strong an identification of abortion as a social ill, fearing that would provide political momentum for legal restrictions.

"Where is the Democratic Party on abortion?" asks Rachel Laser, an abortion policy expert for Third Way, a moderate Democratic group. "I think they are still heavily in a phase of re-thinking it."

--- SNIP ---

OK so nobody has outright switched sides yet.

But who is thinking about it with an eye to the polls?

[jgraz]

1. This one will never happen

The Democrats use Roe the way the Rethugs use gay marriage: to keep their base in line and scare them into turning out to vote. If the Dems start wavering on the right to choose, there really will be no reason to support them any longer.

Of course, their failure to block Roberts and Alito may already count as serious wavering in some people's book. I wonder what this country would be if we actually had two functional politcial parties. :banghead:

[Warpy]

2. Abandoning the working class in 1969 kept them

mostly out of power my whole adult life. If these damned fools think they can win without women, they're completely insane.

Crossing the choice line for me is like crossing the abolitionist line in the 1850s. I won't do it, and I think I've got a lot of company out here.

[Meeker Morgan]

3. Exactly what I think n/t

[Progressive Friend]

4. "Third Way" = right-wing

As this latest poll shows, the country is overwhelmingly pro-choice: http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/index.cfm/fuseaction/viewItem/itemID/16907

[question everything]

5. How sad that they let the Republicans determine the issues

for the debate.

There are so many important topics, even without Iraq: the deterioration of the middle class, the deterioration of our infrastructure (what a great opportunity to generate jobs that cannot be outsourced), the lack of adequate health care for millions of Americans, the dearth of dignified retirement, the deterioration of our public schools -

All these happened under Republican rules. All these speak directly to most Americans.

But if the Democrats - like Kerry - will feel the need to apologize for their abortion stand, then this really will be the end of the party.

[BlueIris]

6. Blech. It's hard to vote Democrat these days.

[Perry Logan]

7. Speak for yourself.

[Perry Logan]

8. But wait! Liberal policies cause abortion rates to drop!

Check out this article by Cristina Page:

"Scanning the globe we discover the countries where abortion is most rare have the strongest pro-choice policies. The countries with the strongest pro-life policies are the ones with the highest abortion rates, often twice our national average. These are the nations that have implemented what our pro-life movement strives to: banning abortion, making contraception hard to come by, and preaching abstinence-only to teens. This high abortion/low abortion trend is true even in our country: we witnessed the most dramatic decline in abortion rates ever recorded during our first pro-choice presidency, that of Bill Clinton’s.
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/08/14/3167/