Choice Commentaries on US Election 2006
Thursday November 9, 2006
- Gary L. Bauer, Chairman, Campaign for Working Families
"Democrats deserve an A for candidate recruitment. In order to win, they ran moderate candidates, many of whom embraced conservative values, such as right to life and the sanctity of traditional marriage. I only hope that their policies match their promises and that they will have an opportunity to act on their espoused values in a House controlled by Speaker Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco. I am skeptical, however, because the most senior Democrats, who will take over as chairmen of key committees, are all unrepentant liberals.
"Interestingly, it appears as though many liberal Republicans were defeated last night. For example, seven GOP losses came in New England alone. The likely effect is that the Republican minority will be ideologically more conservative, while the number of centrist Democrats has grown. Isn't it interesting that Democrats who ran as 'conservatives' won, while Republicans who ran as 'moderates' lost?
"Unfortunately, life issues did not fare so well . . . The struggle to eradicate the evil of slavery in America took decades. So, too, will the struggle to restore the right to life. The cause is just and must continue.
"Friends, if you're discouraged, I understand - I'm not happy either. But I want you to know that we will continue to fight for our values, and our efforts may well be more important than ever as RINOs (Republicans In Name Only) try to pin the blame for this defeat on social conservatives and values voters."
- Fr. Frank Pavone - National Director, Priests for Life
"The Democrats gained power by latching onto our momentum, not theirs. These comments in the Washington Post today are instructive: "The complexion of the Democratic presence in Congress will change as well. Party politics will be shaped by the resurgence of "Blue Dog" Democrats, who come mainly from the South and from rural districts in the Midwest and often vote like Republicans. Top Democrats such as Rep. Rahm Emanuel (Ill.) see these middle-of-the-road lawmakers as the future of the party in a nation that leans slightly right of center. In private talks before the election, Emanuel and other top Democrats told their members they cannot allow the party's liberal wing to dominate the agenda next year.
"And the hear of the 'liberal wing' is support for abortion on demand.
"The Democrats did not (and could not) gain any control in Congress by opposing the pro-life position, but rather by having enough candidates who claimed to embrace it (like Bob Casey, Jr.). Neither party made abortion a top campaign issue; meanwhile, on issues like the war or taxes or spending, pro-life people take various positions. Democratic advances are no indication that people buy into the party's platform on abortion, which in fact the American public has never supported.
"Culturally, we continue to have the momentum
Every trend continues to move in our direction:
opinion polls about abortion
the declining number of abortions, abortionists, and abortion mills
the strong new motivation of our young pro-life activists who know they are abortion survivors
the growing voice of women and men harmed by abortion, who contradict its promise of benefit"
the evidence in science about who the child is
the medical evidence that abortion is no benefit to women
the sociological evidence that abortion is no benefit to society
a new wave of clergy who are more ready for the pro-life battle than ever
a new wave of reporters and other professionals who are far more pro-life than their predecessors
and much more.
"Remember, we are not just working for victory; we are working from victory. Victory is our starting point, because Christ is Risen. The outcome of the battle for life has already been decided. It only remains for us to be sure to do our part to proclaim, celebrate, and serve that victory, and bring its transforming power to every segment of our society!"
- Family Research Council President Tony Perkins
"Democrats won mainly because they seized on a platform largely forsaken by the GOP--social values. When 'integrity voters' saw that Republicans had abandoned their principles, they ultimately abandoned the GOP. From Indiana and Pennsylvania to Florida and Kentucky, Democratic challengers embraced a partisan realignment--not as Nancy Pelosi's radical replicas, but as bona fide men and women of faith. These proclaimed pro-life, pro-God Democrats, once extinct, have returned to compete for the confidence of voters.
"And while our issues prevailed at the polls, we have yet to see if they will prevail in Congress. As Pelosi prepares to lead the House, it will be painfully obvious that the values of her hometown, San Francisco are not the values of Middle America. Make no mistake. The battle in which we are set to engage will be the biggest one we have faced for our core beliefs. The assault against abstinence, marriage, life, good judges, and cloning may be the fiercest yet. As speaker, Rep. Pelosi and the old guard of extremists will pounce on the opportunities that their new committee chairmanships will afford them.
"Although pro-family Democrats may have tipped the election, watch for them to be marginalized in positions where they have little influence. We must work to peel off this new Congress from their radical leadership and hold them accountable to the standards that elected them. The reality is, this majority will only be as durable as the true change it delivers. The integrity voters who overwhelmingly held the GOP accountable will be back in 2008--and the Democrats will have to prove that their conservative credentials are based on more than rhetoric. They have two years to convince the electorate that they belong in power. In the meantime, the pro-family movement must have all hands on deck."
- Rev. Thomas J. Euteneuer, STL, president of Human Life International:
"In many states, voters turned out in large numbers to defend traditional marriage, but voters were not willing to support those who would not support their values. Some so-called conservative senators were all too happy to water down or jettison their 'unwavering' defense of the unborn in the name of political expediency and now they have paid the price. Self-described Reagan conservative George Allen bragged about owning stock in Barr Pharmaceuticals--the manufacturer of Plan B--and President Bush's shameful support of this deadly drug being sold over the counter deflated conservatives' support of many candidates.
"In Missouri, Sen. Jim Talent fearfully refused to come out against the state's cloning initiative not only resulted in its passage, but the loss of his Senate seat. Sen. Rick Santorum's race in Pennsylvania is also telling. Those who espouse 'conventional wisdom' will tell you that issues like abortion never decide a race. That's a lie, as evidenced by the fact that the Democrats purposely picked a pro-life candidate, recognizing that it would neutralize the greatest advantage Santorum had in his re-election bid."
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