In This Turn at the Top, Democrats Seek the Middle on Social Issues

[cal04]

The promise may not outlast their political honeymoon, but Democratic Congressional leaders say they are committed to governing from the center, and not just on bread-and-butter issues like raising the minimum wage or increasing aid for education. They also hope to bring that philosophy to bear on some of the most divisive social issues in politics, like abortion.

In their first days in session, Senate Democratic leaders reintroduced a bill that they said was indicative of their new approach: the Prevention First Act, which seeks to reduce the number of abortions by expanding access to birth control, family planning and sex education.

In the House last week, Democrats showcased a vote on expanding federal financing for embryonic stem cell research, which, despite fierce opposition from many conservatives, has won bipartisan support among lawmakers — and voters — who are otherwise divided on abortion.

The mantra, for many Democrats, is the search for common ground. On gay rights, lawmakers and advocates said the most likely legislation in the new Congress would focus on hate crimes and employment discrimination, issues expected to be much less polarizing than the debate over same-sex marriage that was front and center in the Republican Congress.



http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/16/us/politics/16dems.html?hp&ex=1168923600&en=97a7a21c9778781f&ei=5094&partner=homepage

[BayCityProgressive]

1. The voters aren'd divided on abortion

over 70% support Roe V Wade and one of the most conservative states int he union just defeated an abortion ban.....but keep the lie going...keep holding women back.

[Hippo_Tron]

10. The number goes down significantly when you mention "Partial Birth Abortion"

Which is a non medical term and a way things are framed by the right wing. Unfortunately this translates into a majority of people being against legal third term abortion unless it's in the life and health of the mother.

Personally I don't think there's any reason to ban abortion in the third trimester because I don't believe that women wait that long and suddenly decide to have an abortion. If they terminate pregnancy that late then it's for the health and life of a mother.

Unfortunately all the Republicans have to do is make speeches with vivid descriptions of dilation and extraction or what they call "Partial Birth Abortion" and it turns public opinion to their side.

[katsy]

2. I'm a tad weary of this middle bs.

Stop this war.

Mind the people's business including universal healthcare, balancing the budget, fairness doctrine, verifiable voting, eliminating corporate welfare/personhood and tax breaks for outsourcing jobs, support fair trade not free trade, put social security in a "lockbox", repeal the bankruptcy laws, energy and global warming legislation, restore civil rights, investigate-impeach-impale... I mean convict & remove.

Isn't that enough on their plates for the next 2 years?

Tell voters the Democratic Party will not be the party of voyeurism and panty raids. Just like that. Say it just like that. Smack them down.

Fuck the common ground. Who wants to be a voyeur... mind the people's business. When you do that, you are governing from the left not the right.

Move to the right and people like me promise to give you a difficult time at the local level during the primaries. And that will be a promise kept.

[porphyrian]

3. I'm afraid I'm with you on this. The time for moderation passed years ago.

We need some radical action and we need it now. Make nice later if that's even possible.

[katsy]

4. They are wasting my time playing with these "social" issues.

They should flat out state that the Democratic Party WILL support the right to privacy, Gay rights and Abortion rights. End of story.

What I'm really afraid of is fascism. Corporate fascism. And it's in the interests of the monied and power brokers to divide and conquer the populace with these wedge issues.

Democrats play this corporate game as well as the repubics. They need to be replaced at the grassroots level. I'm in Dr. Dean's camp with the 50 state strategy... but go 1 step further: weed out the corporatists at every level.

[porphyrian]

9. Until our government can no longer be bought, we have no representation.

I don't mind Congress doing the easy things first, as long as they don't ignore the rest of it and they don't miss any windows for doing so. But, they MUST pass massive campaign finance reform (so they don't represent the biggest contributers' interests before the rest of us), they MUST address corporate personhood - corporations can not continue to enjoy the benefits of citizenship without the responsibilities and accountability. And they MUST stop cowering away from our issues, the right to privacy, gay rights, abortion rights, etc. for fear of what conservatives might think. Fuck conservatives. The next two years is their test, whether they understand it yet or not.

[iamjoy]

5. You Don't Get It Do You?

Most Americans are happy when they talk about reducing abortion through access to birth control. It is the position of many pro-choice organizations. By calling that the middle, we are attempting to reclaim that position. For years, Republicans have talked like promoting abstinence (conveniently leaving off the "only") and allowing abortion in cases of rape, incest or protecting women's life (or health) was some how the center.

We need to reclaim the center. My personal belief is that most Americans are not liberal or to the left, they just THINK they are because for so long people like John McCain have been seen as centrist.

As for sexual orinetation, we start by not allowing discrimination for employment. Then you add social services, and so forth. This is the center of American politics. Soon enough, those legal precedents will seal the case for not being able to discriminate for marriage either. But you try to pass a law outright and it will get shot down. I agree that it sucks. I think based on the Fourteenth Amendment there is no reason gays shouldn't be able to marry. But we need to get people ready for that with respect for their illogical "ick" factor.

But we're not going to accomplish anything acting like the Republicans did - except lose again.

It's not giving in to choose your battles, and the way you fight them, wisely.

[katsy]

8. I am pro-choice period.

How well has our "centrist" posturing worked for the past 12 years?

I happen to "get" it. America is in a position it has not found itself in since the great depression. Our very social fabric is being torn apart, purposely, by neocons.

Maybe it's time to treat the disease rather than the symptoms. That, IMO, is what voters will respond to.

I respect your opinion and agree with much of what you state. Personally, I believe the Democrats can promote our party platform on these social issues, but get the hell busy on the larger "diseased" body politic.

[mmonk]

6. When did this party grow so many feathers?

[bobbolink]

7. Oh, for crying in a bucket! The way to reduce abortions is to increase standard of living!

What in the world is it going to take for them to GET IT--all they have to do is keep drilling away at the fact that abortions were up during Bush I, down during Clinton, and waaay up again during Bush II.

REally, wise up, Dems!!

[Hippo_Tron]

11. This fact should be repeated at nauseum

Granted comprehensive sex education is a good way to reduce unwanted pregnancies as proven by Minnesota's pilot program. Democrats need to talk about sex education and they need to talk about the standard of living and how abortion rates went down under Clinton.

[bobbolink]

12. Well, I'm not nauseous yet, ^_^, but I keep repeating it.

It looks like our office-holding Dems won't repeat it, so I hope thousands of us in the lower ranks keep saying it and saying it!

I just heard of a program, called Christian Association of Youth Mentors, that has had very good results in lowering crime rates, gang activity and teenage pregnancy, simply by "being there" for ages 8-13. I don't think kids take too well to lectures, but adults who care and are there to actually walk with them through those hard (and sometimes terrifying years) can change some of these outcomes.

HOWEVER! I think the biggest factor (no stats, just my strong intuition) is poverty.

Suppose there are any actual studies on that?

:hi: