Title: The Democratic Party Is More Extreme on Abortion Than Ever | Time
Headings: The Democratic Party Is More Extreme on Abortion Than Ever
The Democratic Party Is More Extreme on Abortion Than Ever
Ideas
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Content: The Democratic Party Is More Extreme on Abortion Than Ever | Time
Ideas
politics
The Democratic Party Is More Extreme on Abortion Than Ever
The Democratic Party Is More Extreme on Abortion Than Ever
Ideas
By Marjorie Dannenfelser
July 26, 2016 4:47 PM EDT
Marjorie Dannenfelser is the president of the Susan B. Anthony List, a pro-life political action committee. O n Monday night the Democratic Party ratified a platform custom made to reflect Hillary Clinton’s policy agenda. And just when you thought the Party couldn’t get more extreme on abortion, think again. The last time the Democratic Party nominated a Clinton for the presidency was 1996. Bill Clinton was no friend to unborn children, twice vetoing the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act. But Bill Clinton and the Party’s platform were at least willing to pay lip service to pro-life Americans, especially those within the Democratic Party. It was Bill Clinton who said abortion should be “safe, legal, and rare,” with the last word indicating abortion isn’t something to be celebrated. And in 1996, the DNC adopted a platform that characterized abortion as a “difficult issue” and because of that, “we respect the individual conscience of each American.” It called for making abortion “less necessary” and “more rare.” Comparing it to the previous platform, this was new language geared at keeping pro-life Democrats in the Party, likely upset with Clinton’s first veto of the Partial Birth Abortion Ban just months before the 1996 convention.