Title: Democrats for Life urge DNC to change party platform on abortion
Headings: Democrats for Life urge DNC to change party platform on abortion
Democrats for Life urge DNC to change party platform on abortion
Content: Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden last year said he supports repealing the Hyde Amendment, which prevents Medicaid coverage of abortion. Biden had previously supported Hyde for several decades. His running mate, Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), has been a staunch defender of abortion rights. She has a 100 percent voting record according to NARAL Pro-Choice America, which scores members of Congress based on their votes on abortion rights issues. A 2019 Pew Research study found that 70 percent of those who identify as or lean Democrat support the party's position on abortion. Language defending abortion rights has been part of every Democratic platform since Roe v. Wade was decided in 1973. The 1976 platform said it would be "undesirable" to overturn the court's decision. Platforms in the 1990s and 2000s focused on making abortions "safe, legal and rare" -- a phrase used by former President Clinton during his 1992 campaign. But in 2016, the party adopted more proactive language, calling for a repeal of the Hyde Amendment and focusing on the concept of reproductive justice, or eliminating discrimination and barriers that disadvantage low-income women and women of color in seeking reproductive health care, including abortions.