Jeanne Mancini: Why abortion could be Democrats' biggest problem in 2020
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The 2020 Democratic presidential candidates all see abortion as a winning issue. But as the Democratic field moves further and further left on abortion, they are losing mainstream America. Democratic presidential candidates have made it very clear that they are extreme on abortion and it is the women thus far who are most outspoken.
One big reason for their extremism could be that the abortion lobby fills their war chests. Federal Election Commission filings of the money Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., raised in the first quarter of 2019 include donations from former Planned Parenthood CEO Cecile Richards, Planned Parenthood of Los Angeles CEO Susan Dunlap and others who work full-time pushing a radical abortion agenda. NARAL Pro-Choice America gave nearly $12,000 to the presidential candidate in 2016 during her Senate race. Abortion group Emily’s List the same year donated more than $21,000 to her Senate campaign.
Still, others involved in imposing far-left abortion policies across the country gave Harris tens of thousands of dollars during her campaign for California attorney general in 2010. Emily’s List gave $14,000, according to records from Election Track – and that’s just scratching the surface. Emily’s List in 2018 gave presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., a whopping $128,432, Sen. Gillibrand $49,872 and presidential candidate Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., $13,449, according to Open Secrets.
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PLANNED PARENTHOOD PRESIDENT OUSTED AFTER JUST 8 MONTHS ON THE JOB
With their war chests are voting records to match. Planned Parenthood Action awards Harris 100 percent on its congressional scorecard. Harris’ views are so radical that she voted against the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, which would’ve banned abortion at 20 weeks – halfway through pregnancy – nationwide except in cases of rape, incest or to save the life of the mother. Likewise, Gillibrand, Klobuchar and Warren all have Planned Parenthood Action congressional scorecards of 100 percent and all voted against the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act.
To put their stance on late-term abortion in perspective, these women are part of a fringe group who oppose any commonsense abortion restrictions. Americans otherwise overwhelmingly support legislation that bans late-term abortion except in rare instances. In fact, 75 percent of Americans say abortion should be restricted to – at most – the first three months of pregnancy, according to a recent survey conducted by Marist. This includes 60 percent of Democrats and 61 percent of those who identify as pro-choice.
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Most Americans also believe taxpayer dollars shouldn’t fund abortion, per the same survey. Gillibrand on her website explicitly says she would work to roll back the amendment that ensures Americans aren’t subsidizing the barbaric procedure. But that is coming from the same woman who compared pro-lifers to racists.
Then there is Harris’ plan – if elected – to help enact federal legislation that would force states to get approval or “preclearance” from the Department of Justice before any laws regulating or restricting abortion can be enforced. She announced this proposal in response to the wave of pro-life legislation passed by the people through their duly elected representatives in many statehouses across the nation.
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Meanwhile, Elizabeth Warren wants to make Roe v. Wade, which permits abortion through all nine months of pregnancy, a federal law. Making abortion a right under federal law would also, by the way, put an end to the Hyde amendment.
When it comes to abortion, their voting records and future plans are way out of touch with where the average American is on the issue. Perhaps it is the generous support of the abortion lobby that makes these candidates so beholden to big abortion. But they don’t align with the average American’s views on the issue and that will be a huge hurdle during the general election.