We understand that he later dialed it back a bit. Nevertheless, DNC Chairman Tom Perez sent shock waves through the electorate over the weekend. This is what he said:
Tom Perez became the first head of the party to demand ideological purity on abortion rights, promising Friday to support only Democratic candidates who back a woman’s right to choose.
“Every Democrat, like every American, should support a woman’s right to make her own choices about her body and her health,” Perez said in a statement. “That is not negotiable and should not change city by city or state by state.”
“At a time when women’s rights are under assault from the White House, the Republican Congress, and in states across the country,” he added, “we must speak up for this principle as loudly as ever and with one voice.”
Perez’s statement follows the DNC’s controversial embrace of Heath Mello, a Democratic mayoral candidate in Omaha, Nebraska, whose years-long history of voting against abortion rights in the state Legislature drew fire from progressives this week. Daily Kos, a liberal website that raises money for lesser-known Democratic candidates, pulled its endorsement of Mello this week after discovering his history on the issue, and NARAL Pro-Choice America President Ilyse Hogue slammed the DNC for adding him to its cross-country unity tour.
So what do you do if you are pro-life Democrat? I guess that you have to choose between your personal values and the “D” after your name.
Frankly, Mr. Perez’ remarks are insane, and may reflect the pressure that the party is under to pander to the left.
It also shows the hypocrisy of the media.
What would media reports be saying if the GOP chairman had said something the other way, i.e. the party will only support pro-life candidates?
We would hear about the GOP taken over by right-wingers and Christians unwilling to accept a different point of view. The GOP would be labeled “intolerant”. Every GOP lawmaker would be asked the question in the media. On the other hand, most of the media has been rather indifferent about Mr. Perez’ remarks.
In the meantime, the politics of this leave you wondering about his political common sense. Is the man that tone deaf?
Mr. Perez should chat with Wendy Davis, the Democrat who lost big in Texas in 2014. The reason, as Michael Barone pointed out, was abortion. I should add that Miss Davis’ position on abortion turned off a lot of Hispanic women in particular.
Who is flying the Democrats’ plane these days? It must be someone who wants to crash rather than land it.
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