It's All About Abortion

The confounding choice of Sarah Palin to the Republican presidential ticket has created a firestorm of news, both critical and supportive for the VP nominee. It was speculated from the outset that part of the reason for her choice was to, in a sense, dominate the debate by dominating media attention. One might as well assume such since it has turned out to be so successful. After just 5 days one might wonder if Obama and Biden are on an extended vacation or for that matter if McCain is still with her on the ballot. During her announcement speech August 29th she referred to John McCain as “my running mate”, a title normally reserved for the VP slot, but no one appeared to notice or even question the reference. Perhaps that was telling. Certainly, in this brief window of the campaign, the question of who is going to be the next President seems to be rising and falling with swells caused by this little know political figure.

Is that the reason McCain made the pick? Of course not, despite the effective strategy. If not then, why was she chosen? Even Republican leaders at the Convention (amazingly) took no exception to the report that McCain had wanted Tom Ridge or Joe Lieberman, actually confirming the report. It was communicated in a public fashion that if one of those individuals was chosen there would be a floor fight during the Convention. So McCain succumbed. I heard one Republican leader say later during a radio interview, “(McCain) may have had his bones broken as a POW, but it didn’t affect his hearing”. So why did this “maverick” so quickly decide to run with herd? It’s simple...it’s all about abortion. As far Right as Palin is on other social issues; creationism, Christian orthodoxy, welfare, gun control, and healthcare for example, it is her strict, no exceptions stand on abortion that created the collective sigh of relief from the Republican base when she was picked for the VP spot.

What is it about this “issue” that engenders such divisiveness in our culture and which doesn’t have an equivalent anywhere else on earth? Barack Obama made only one reference to the abortion question during his acceptance speech and it was bi-partisan. He essentially said that the debate is not going to end and perhaps will never end, but at least there should be an effort by both sides to come together and commit to a common goal, that being to reduce the number of abortions. I believe John McCain would like to say the same thing, but he can’t.

I think the entire abortion debate is pretty much divided into 5 Groups; (1) those for whom the elimination of abortion is a showstopper, where there is no consideration of any other issue until that one has be accepted, (2) those who agree with the right to life philosophy, but accept that it is a social issue not shared by a great many people who are, on the whole, very nice people, (3) those who believe that women have both the God-given responsibility and burden to make decisions about what happens within their bodies, (4) those who think that the effort to pass laws which would restrict a woman’s right to choose is no more than the attempt to violate female civil rights, and (5) those who don’t give a flip, one way or the other.

Essentially all politicians fall in Groups 2 or 3 (with perhaps a smattering in Group 5 - the truth be known). In order for anyone to reach a position of governance they must address the priorities of the offices they seek and that forces them to look beyond the abortion debate once they’re elected. However, it’s the individuals in Groups 1 and 4 who drive the debate, and for the Republicans, spearheaded by evangelical Christians, the folks in Group 1 are currently holding sway. They have provided the springboard for other politicians, George Bush being the most recent major beneficiary, but nothing comes close to the power they wielded on the selection of Sarah Palin to (possibly) become the single human being in this country to lead us and the free world should her 72 to 76 year old, cancer surviving President become incapable of holding the office or die (check ordinary actuarial tables if you want to see how high the chances of that happening is. I doubt McCain could get life insurance – fortunate for him he doesn’t need it).

The reason that the extreme wing of the Republican Party forced this hand is because she is one of them. Where in their heart of hearts they know loyal politicians basically give them lip service (those in Group 2), with Palin they’re giddy when expressing that she’s the “real deal”. I think they’re right, that they now have on the national stage an authentic Group 1 politician. The fact that she is also a woman, a mother five times over, delivered a child she knew would be handicapped, talks of Jesus like he was the 4th branch of Government, and has a 17 year old daughter that neither embraces abortion, adoption, or (apparently) birth control is just icing on the cake.

The primary difficulty I see in this abortion debate is that the Group 1 folks have boxed themselves (literally and emotionally) into a corner from which they can’t emerge. They cannot separate their own personal belief from the controversy; that to live in a society that allows abortion is an unacceptable compromise to that belief. Ironically, their defiance to simply work for the common good (i.e. reduce abortions) radicalizes their position and assures that a significant subset of the population (probably a large majority) will never provide support. They feel, understandably, that this is a life and death position they defend which must be attained through legislation. They fail to see that the debate is really about decision making and, more amazingly, they fail to see that such decision making by the individual, choice itself, is totally consistent with Christian teachings.

The pro-choice people (Group 4) also often fail to understand and communicate that the burden of a life and death decision by a child-bearing woman was given by the same Power that created the woman in the first place, and not by the wise benevolence of a free society. As such they lose an ability to share the tragedy, dehumanizing their position. However, their position does allow them to look beyond the issue and place it in its proper context as it relates to governing a nation. Had they not and were forced to satisfy some some extreme wing of their party, we might be looking at the mayor of some other sheltered municipality of 7000 a heartbeat away from running this country of 300 million should Barack Obama become President. Once again, a collective sigh of relief.