NRLC Chooses the “Lesser of Two Evils”
July 3rd, 2008 | by Ken |If you googled “John McCain pro-life” just a few months ago (no quotes) you would have seen a thought-provoking article entitled “How John McCain Threatens the Pro-Life Cause.” That article has since been removed and now if you go to the NRLC (National Right to Life) website you will see a very clear attempt by NRLC to throw their massive weight behind Senator John McCain. While I understand that NRLC can do whatever it pleases, in the interest of public discussion of the issues I wish that they were more transparent about their endorsement process. After all, McCain wasn’t the only presidential nominee to “veer right” on the issue of life in order to garner support from social conservatives. If Romney had ended up with the GOP nomination (a fact that could have been reality had he not dropped out after Super Tuesday) would the NRLC be singing the same tune?
Consider also the GOP’s increasing acceptance of pro-choice candidates. For months Giuliani was considered the GOP “front-runner” with many voters and pundits deciding that the party’s pro-life credentials were not as important as its national security credentials or the ability to defeat well-known Democratic candidates. A similar case is that of California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. It is hardly any surprise that the Republican governor of the most influential state in the electoral college has had to play as a moderate in order to gain acceptance among voters. What is surprising is how the rest of the GOP so warmly embraces a man who holds social positions far to the left of the GOP on “gay rights” and abortion. McCain is a close friend of the govenator and not surprisingly his own stance on “gay rights” is somewhat murky (see links). How far will the Republican party go in embracing “social conservatives” who only wear that hat when it is convenient? Are social conservatives really going to continue to be happy with a party that, despite a lengthy majority in Congress and a hold on the Presidency, failed to end the regime of Roe v. Wade? Are social conservatives going to continue to support a party that indicates that when the pressure is on they flake out?
Playing games with sentiment is wrong. Social conservatives need representatives who take them seriously as a base of support. We need to take a hard look at the Constitution Party and we need to support men like Chuck Baldwin, resisting the temptation and fear to choose the “lesser” of two evils.
PS - the deleted article from NRLC can still be found at the Internet Archive: link
