Back in the bad old days before the 2004 election I was in a history class over at UNC, talking politics with my teacher. He was speculating about the effects of President Bush appointing more justices to the SCOTUS (that's the Supreme Court of the United States for those of you who prefer words), what that would do for women's rights, and was surprised when I said "Well, the Republicans have no intention of ending legal abortion, ever"
At the time this seemed a bit crazy. After all Republicans have been calling every single abortion "a murder" and legal abortion was "a Holocaust" for decades. Reagan ran on, among other things, ending abortion. Every Republican party platform has called for overturning Roe (that's short for Roe vs. Wade, the legal opinion that prevents the government from interfering with a woman's right to get an abortion). President Bush43 even called for a "culture of life." It's little wonder my teacher looked at me like I might be crazy or ignorant (that latter of which I confess to). However as somebody who had been thinking about the issue for decades, I was pretty sure of myself, and the Republicans have confirmed the truth of my words by their own actions, and it illustrates a major difference between the Democratic and Republican parties.
The fact is that despite their words, the Republican party has never done anything to end legal abortion in the USA. No amendments to the constitution, no "holding the budget hostage" like they might for a tax cut - nothing. Why is this? The answer is that opposition to abortion has been the issue that brings a lot of people to politics. Opposition to legal abortion has been a gold mine for the Republican party. Well meaning pro-life folks give their money, time and votes to the Republican party every 2-4 years, because the Republicans "talk the talk" on opposition to abortion. Of course if the Republicans actually ended legal abortion in the USA (their stated goal after all) what would pro-life folks do? It's reasonable to assume that having ended "murder" and "a holocaust" many would leave politics, or at least start looking at other issues to decide their votes. On the other hand, if the Republicans came close to ending legal abortion in the USA, the majority of Americans would turn against them. Not that I think a majority of Americans really care the much for legal abortion, but they certainly care when their freedoms are taken away by government. One might never need or want an abortion, and even see abortion as, at best, a tragic decision. However to take the option away completely would be a step too far, and the Republican leadership knows this. Hence they have to walk a tightrope of calling for the end of abortion but in their actions doing nothing. More disgusting is it's clear the Pro-Life leadership knows this - they don't get to be head of their massive and wealthy organizations by being stupid after all. But they like their well paying jobs, the media attention, and of course the access to high level Republicans, so they say nothing. Why should they? If "the holocaust of abortion" continues forever, these hucksters can continue to gather up money from their well meaning followers, enrich themselves, and continue to enjoy all the perks and benefits of their jobs which pretty much demand nothing of them.
Contrast this with the Democratic Party. President Johnson knew that by passing Civil Rights legislation (which would certainly please their African American supporters) the Democratic Party would lose the South for a generation. Many southern Democrats switched parties to the Republican side. Most of the South went from being solidly Democratic to solidly Republican. Yet President Johnson didn't flinch, he rammed the legislation through congress, signed it, and accepted the consequences. President Johnson did the right thing for the country, period.
What I ponder is how long can the Republican pimping of the pro-life community go on? Rick Warren, representing a new generation of evangelical hucksters, continues to embrace opposition to abortion as a key issue for voting. The Catholic leadership in Rome threatens damnation on those who support legal abortion. Clearly the Pro-Life leadership wants the money to keep rolling in, so they will never, ever tell the truth that legal abortion is here to stay in the USA. They will never tell the truth that the Republicans they embrace will never lift a finger to "save the unborn". Of course the Republican party will never change their policy of "talk only" when it comes to their "culture of life". So how long will the people on the ground, the pro-life folks who sincerely and deeply care for the millions of "babies" that have been killed by abortion, continue to blindly support their own leadership and the Republican party?
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