WaPo: Why Democrats who oppose abortion rights are finding it harder to remain in the party
With access to abortion under threat in red states and, potentially, from a more conservative Supreme Court, candidates for the Democratic presidential nomination have been going out of their way to reaffirm their abortion rights stances. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) tweeted "Abortion is healthcare" last week as President Trump was speaking to abortion opponents at the March for Life. In December, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said she would wear a Planned Parenthood scarf to her inauguration.
On Sunday, during a Fox News town hall, Democrats for Life president Kristen Day asked former South Bend, Ind., mayor Pete Buttigieg whether he wanted the support of voters who oppose abortion rights. He didn't respond directly, instead reiterating his support for Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion nationwide.
"There's a crisis within our own party," Day said later in an interview, describing antiabortion Democrats as experiencing "homelessness" in the political arena.
Day said she made several efforts to meet with Buttigieg's campaign to discuss abortion, with no success. She said it was disappointing because Indiana has been a home to several Democrats who oppose abortion rights, including former U.S. senator Joe Donnelly, who served from 2013 to 2019, and former congressman Brad Ellsworth, who served from 2007 to 2011. She also pointed to how Democratic leaders are supporting Marie Newman, who is mounting a primary challenge against Rep. Daniel Lipinski (Ill.), one of the last anti-abortion rights Democrats in the House, as further proof that abortion has become a party-wide litmus test.
