Thoughts on politics and family values...

As an avid Newsweek reader, I usually read my weekly magazine cover to cover (ok - sometimes I do skip boring policy articles...). However, this week I did not get past an article called, What Happened to Family Values. Jacob Weisberg viciously attacks Sarah Palin's pro-life view point (a more warm & fuzzy view of Sarah Palin is on the opposite page).

Ironically, the arguments that Jacob Weisberg made in the article to discredit pro-life policies of the Republican Party are similar to the ones I make from the other side of the fence. I can easily take his words - change a few to a pro-life view - and voila - it works.

So here goes... I have long expected the Democratic Party to resolve the conflict of its compassionate vision for caring for the weak, disadvantaged and vulnerable by moderating its stance on abortion. Politically, pro-choice absolution has never made much sense. It rejects common sense limitations to abortion and instead wants to reverse the ban on partial-birth abortions and the Born-Alive Infants Protection Act, which prevents the killing of infants mistakenly left alive by abortion. Procedures that the majority of the country (including an unapologetic Joe Biden - whose voting record shows he supports these limits) agrees are cruel and unusual. Obama stated at a Planned Parenthood fundraiser that his first act as President would be signing the FOCA bill that will overturn the above restrictions – and over 300 other local, state and federal abortion restriction laws. I had hoped that Obama would take a more moderate stance on abortion, but his voting record does not give me any hope of finding a middle ground. Instead his pro-choice “purism” (he is only the 2nd presidential nominee to be endorsed by Planned Parenthood and they give him a 100% rate) is ethically flawed.

I recently received a call from the Democratic Party asking if I had any questions. I asked how a pro-lifer would fit into the party. I was honestly hoping that she would give me SOMETHING. In the past, the Democratic platform has stated that abortions should be safe, legal and rare (even though they were not consistent on voting to make abortions rare - at least the word rare reflected an unease with the procedure). Or maybe she could have tried to sell me on the new Democratic platform has eliminated the word rare (hmmm - not a good sign), but does state that they desire to reduce the number of abortions through adoption programs, education and health care. I wanted this woman to give me ANYTHING that would help me to view Obama as anything but a pro-choice extremist on this issue! Or maybe she could have even given me contact information for Democrats for Life. Instead, the caller was stumped and quickly hung up.
Her lack of an answer and Obama’s record gave me my answer. Under Obama, there is no place for a pro-lifer in the Democratic Party.

Now I have never been a one issue voter - I passionately believe that poverty and other "liberal" social issues need to be addressed and have more goverment involvement, but this year, the fact that Obama rejects ANY restrictions on abortions and instead has pledged to Planned Parenthood that he will sign the Freedom of Choice Act, a Congressional bill that would overturn every abortion limit nationwide - from a ban on partial-birth abortions to parental notification laws... well, lets just say I am looking for a McCain/Palin sign for the front yard.

And who doesn't like a pit bull with a little lipstick on?