C-magazine, Topic: The Democratic Party Is Not the “Prochoice Party” and It Never Will Be

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"Political parties in the United States are nonideological, mass-based coalitions that by their very nature are best understood as vehicles for winning elections—nothing more and nothing less."

Excerpt:
"There are few controversies in American politics more enduring than the argument over whether the Democratic Party should be a “big tent” on the issue of abortion and welcome candidates and officials who oppose reproductive rights. The debate recurs every four years over the terms of the Democratic Party’s platform, and it simmers consistently beneath the surface of the party’s generally strong support for reproductive rights and access to abortion services. The controversy has flared with particular intensity in recent months in response to Sen. Bernie Sanders and DNC Chair Tom Perez offering their support to “prolife” Democratic mayoral candidate Heath Mello in Omaha, Nebraska. Perez backed down pretty quickly in the face of outrage among prochoice activists within his party. But former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi fanned the flames rather furiously when she offered that “of course” it is possible for an opponent of abortion to be a member in good standing of the Democratic Party. “This is not a rubber stamp party,” Pelosi said, noting that the “one thing” that truly “unifies” congressional Democrats is “values about working families.” Otherwise, she noted, “some people are more or less enthusiastic about this issue or that issue. They’ll go along with the program, but their enthusiasm is about America’s working families.”

Pelosi’s statement was remarkably obtuse on its face in that it blithely decoupled access to reproductive services from public policies related to the “values of working families.” But in its cold-hearted calculation of partisan advantage, her remarks were as clear an indication as one is likely to get that the elected leaders of the Democratic Party cannot be counted on to maintain nonnegotiable institutional support for reproductive rights if those leaders conclude that such a stance might cost the party votes and electoral victories. At a fundamental level, in other words, Representative Pelosi’s statement on abortion’s place in the Democratic Party was an illuminating lesson in how American political parties actually operate."

 Take it all in, here: The Democratic Party Is Not the “Prochoice Party” and It Never Will Be – Conscience Magazine

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