And Once Again, the Democrats Let the Republicans Rule the Party

This is insane. Why the Democrats are even considering this is just stupidity defined. Sixteen years of GOP rule (four of which were TOTAL GOP rule) have not overcome the power of Roe v. Wade. One of the few things we can claim as our own - a woman's right to choose - is being challenged by our own party.

The more Republican we get, the weaker we get as Democrats. Demand a return to what our party stands for. Write the DNC NOW. While we're at it, let the Democratic Leadership Council know how they're steering our party into unrecognizability.

Oh, and let Nancy Pelosi have a piece of your mind for supporting a lintscreen like Roemer.

Democratic Leadership Rethinking Abortion

After long defining itself as an undisputed defender of abortion rights, the Democratic Party is suddenly locked in an internal struggle over whether to redefine its position to appeal to a broader array of voters.

The fight is a central theme of the contest to head the Democratic National Committee, particularly between two leading candidates: former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, who supports abortion rights, and former Indiana Rep. Tim Roemer, an abortion foe who argues that the party cannot rebound from its losses in the November election unless it shows more tolerance on one of society's most emotional conflicts.

Roemer is running with the encouragement of the party's two highest-ranking members of Congress, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco and incoming Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada. Dean, a former presidential candidate, is popular with the party's liberal wing.

If Roemer were to succeed Terry McAuliffe as Democratic chairman in the Feb. 10 vote, the party long viewed as the guardian of abortion rights would suddenly have two antiabortion advocates at its helm. Reid, too, opposes abortion and once voted for a nonbinding resolution opposing Roe vs. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court ruling that legalized abortion.

Comments

[P. Sirkin]

Between the Democratic party's support for the Iraqi war; its disregard for voting rights as evidenced by its stupid campaigns and wasted funds to keep Ralph Nader from exercising HIS right to run and the rights of his supporters to VOTE FOR HIM, I had just about made up my mind NEVER to support the party again. The party's recent cowtowing to a rabid minority view (22% is no mandate) espousing religious fundamentalism rivaling the Taliban, the appointing of anti-choice Reed to the party's highest Congressional leadership position and now, suggestion that it attempt to cultivate membership among those who oppose choice has finally convinced me to abandon all hope. Ralph Nader was right, the Democratic Party is simply the second head of the GOP beast that will kill us all. Color me disgusted and outta here.

[CarolT]

Wrote all three, thanks for the links, they are always welcome. I tell you, I have really changed my thoughts on Nancy Pelosi lately, it is such a disappointment to read that she endorses someone who thinks the republican "light" way is still the way for this party to go. Take away womens rights, take away what support of myself and the million other women I marched with this past April.... how can they think this is the right direction?
::sigh::

[Chris Andersen]

Argh!

That article continues to propagate so many media myths, not the least of which is that Dean's support is primarily based on liberals. Dean's MO is all about reform, not ideology. And he has also talked about the need to embrace pro-life Democrats in the party while still maintaining the party's historical support for choice.

[rhoda]

Thanks for the heads up. I emailed all three. As a life long democrat it won't be easy to pull the lever, but I'll vote third party if the democratic party softens their positions on issues just to win.There are enough of us to win elections (and more being born each day) if we run smart and tough campaigns. The trouble with Kerry is that he didn't get smart and tough until it was too late. And all those upscale vacations. Ugh!

[fullnelson]

If the Democrats go anti-choice, I will not be a Democrat. No, I won't vote for Nader (ever!), but I will look for a "liberal" alternative party to support financially and with my activism. Maybe that's how we ended up with Kerry as our candidate in the first place--that same kind of middle of the road pandering that attempts to pass for progressive leadership.

[spearNmagicHelmet]

Still not getting the whole 'one-party' system thing eh?

[The Truth]

I am suggesting that we put up a website and expose these Democrat-Lites for what they really are...pigs feeding at the corporate trough.

May I suggest: GETRIDOFTHEDLC.COM?

[big dave]

Democrats are the overwhelming majority in this country on the real issues. When we run as real democrats and should tough intestinal fortitude, we will be a permanent majority. Most Americans support our agenda of social freedom, govt out of wombs and bedrooms, protection of civil rights, getting the best qualified and law abiding officials in govt, responsible economic policy that puts the middle class first, a strong pro education policy that makes college more attainable and learning more profound, a tough fact based foreign policy, a health care system that puts patients first, the right to file legitimate lawsuits, etc.....

The problem is the corporate phonies in the DLC who care more about receiving 6 digit paychecks from their corporate connections than they do about real issues that face most Americans and ironically enough, are supported by most Americans.

The agenda is mostly spelled out above. Learn the language my friends.

Big Dave from queens

The DLC is a false prophet. They only want you to think they're creating change, when in fact thier in bed with the neo-tards fucking all thier corporate special interests to the bank.

[Nancy]

And politicians wonder why Americans don't all vote! I will vote for Dean no matter what he calls himself. I am all for having a say in who gets to be the nominee. We need to stop having two and then a few states decide who our nominee is. Byron Dorgan has a good article I read through Buzzflash on candidates being a candidate of all the States and I agree and have said so previously. I am from the South - we are not all red. Although I am for a woman's right to choose, I myself am not for abortion and believe birth control and education about sex,etc. should be the forefront. Corporations should be out of the sponsoring parties period. No money at all from Corporations. And if the Dems cave on Social Security I am totally finished with them as well.

[meh]

The chances of the DNC rejecting support for Roe v. Wade are pretty slim. That being said, it's a bit of a misnomer to say that someone supports "choice" if everything they support is in the interests of a corporation like Planned Parenthood and not necessarily in the interests of women. There are risks to any medical procedure, and it's somewhat absurd that people are more than happy to tell women the dangers of childbearing and support lawsuits against doctors who botch deliveries yet turn around and try to insulate PP or doctors who perform abortions from the same treatment. The public discussion needs to move beyond the issue of rights into a discussion about responsible ways to deal with a medical procedure.

Go to a new party. I don't know what the Democratic Party stands for anymore; I've left already. It may takes years for the party I support to make it to the top but I rather lose on principle than win by any means necessary.

The thing Democrats don't realise is even if they have an anti-abortion person at the top the Republicans will still label them as pro-abortion. You'd think Democrats would have learned in 2002 that working with Bush or supporting Republican ideas gets you no respect from the Republican Party. Bush proved that by campaigning against them.

The media sucks, the Republcans suck, and the deluded Democrats suck. The democrats need to start up their own liberal TV network funded as much as possible by the people to counterbalance the Republican/Cowardly/Corporate reporting of ABC, NBC, CBS, MSNBC, Bush News Network (Fox), and MSNBC

[Nancy]

go read mahablog.com

[Jerry Malone]

As the gap between the haves and the have-nots widens the gap between Republicans and Democrats hardly exists anymore. I agree with everything Big Dave from Queens said. I believe the Democrats are still the majority in this country but they are not going to win by trying to be more Republican.
Come on for Christ's sake and stand up and be proud of who you are supposed to be; the people's party. Stop apologizing for who you are and take a firm stand on the issues that affect the welfare of everyday working people. Don't let abortion and gay marriage be the only "moral" issues on the table. Let corporate America know that "the people" are the real power in this country.
You don't need to change your platform; you just need to stand firm on the one you have.

[Lewis]

The problem with these idiot democrats is that they dont realise that abortion is just a symptom of the republicans FRAMING THE DEBATE. If they agree with Repubs on abortion, the Repubs move onto some other wedge issue, like gay marriage or something else. Dems need to realise that the reason Abortion is still an issue in America, where it isn't anywhere else in the civilsed world (being Australian, I can vouch for that) is becoz the Rpublicans go out of their way to keep bringing it up - how many more elections are the dems gonna allow to eb fought on this ridiculous issue?

[Arthur Cridebring]

I would rather lose as a democrat and be true to my principles; than become something I am not.

If the democrats think they can increase their voter base by becoming watered down republicans
they might as well fold right now.

[jerry pecora]

I am so sick of the Democratic Party "leadership" and their capitulation to the White House and their media mouthpieces. Yes, the political landscape has changed (it always does), but the leadership of this party has never been more out of touch with the rank and file in my lifetime (and I'm 50). Most of all, I'm disgusted with the undue influence of the Democratic 'Leadership'? Council and it's corporate wolves in sheep's clothing.
It gave us Clinton, but it also gave us NAFTA, and GATT, and 'welfare reform', no advocacy for corporate oversight, labor issues (minimum wage ring a bell?), etc. Remember, it is the DLC that has been running away from the term "liberal", while coining shallow ones like "New Democrat". Well, I'd rather be a Real Democrat than a 'new' one..
I've decided to change my affiliation to Independent, after voting Democratic since 1972. I've resigned myself to the fact that the current Leadership would rather lose their way than win anyone else's...JP

[Bob Pagani]

Here's what I think about the idea of the Democrats moving closer to the Republicans in ideology:

http://crankymediaguy.com/commentary.html

[Cynthia Cline]

I will quit a lifetime of membership to the Demoratic Party over this issue if the abortion stance changes. I suspect the base that is taken for granted (liberals) will leave too and the party will split for good.

[will sanchez]

I don't know guys. I think the Republican Party has defaulted to the Christian right, the Democratic Party to the Socialist left, and both parties act primarily in the interest of global industry. A middle, progressive party must emerge for those of us who believe in compromise.

[Jason Haworth]

Yeah...while it doesn't shock me that so many Democrats are little sissy nancies that run away from their core values at the first sign of trouble (Bush "won"...I'm going to Canada) it does disturb me that the DNC might be taken over by this ideology. I don't think many Dems are Pro-Abortion, but I think this is the way the GOP has framed Dems. This is mainly because the GOP continues to move Right everytime Dems move more to the Center which allows the GOP to move the center further to the Right. The more extreme the Party ideology is on Both Sides, the more likely we are to achieve a true middle ground in politics. The problem is that Dems keep caving in. If the DNC elects an anti-abortion head to its chair, I am going to become a Nader supporter over night. Nader is right, there are problems with the Democratic Party. Democrats have become way to pro-big-business and they have backed off from protecting citizens rights in favor of embracing anything they think can "pull the party out of this slump." I am tired of hearing how the Republicans won this time when it is VERY clear that all across the country, electronic voting fraud occured. The DNC has done little to nothing to track down this problem, in fact it was the Green party candidate Cobb and Nader who have moved this forward. The DNC does need new leadership and it needs to be SCREAMING LIBERAL, not a Republican Jr. We have enough idiots in power right now...

[J. Pipkin]

What we really must address is voters' rights, voter suppression. Had every vote been counted, there is no doubt that Kerry would have won, and we wouldn't be haggling over other issues, which are definitely important, but not the deciding factors. We will continue to lose until the voting issues are resolved.