Why I Oppose the Democratic Platform/Agenda -- Part I

[A Personal Request: If you are planning to vote for Obama, please make a personal committment you will still love me after reading this post.]

I do not remember ever publically stating that I oppose a candidate. My preference is to state who I support and why. I am not opposed to Barack Obama; I wish him well. May God place him in a position of public service suitable to his considerable talents. I oppose the political philosophy to which he is committed and therefore the policies and platform on which he is running. I am greatly concerned about the future of the United States and by extension the world should Obama be elected. If he is elected and the Democrats have strong majorities in the Congress, our country will make huge steps in the direction of social liberalism that will not be easily reversed. I have earlier stated why I am a conservative. I will now state why I am strongly opposed to the election of a liberal democrat as president with some overlap.

First, murder is evil and late term abortions are murder. It is not necessary to argue the point at which life begins to recognize the full humanity of an infant whether still in the uterus or immediately after birth. If there is a possibility a child can survive outside the mother’s womb without extraordinary intervention (i.e., mechanical life support) there should absolutely be no question about that child’s “inalienable rights” as a human being. A mother and her doctor have no rights of privacy that supersede that child’s right to life. Late term abortions replicate the ancient practice of “exposing” unwanted babies by taking them to the local garbage dump for the animals to destroy. To argue for late term abortions on the grounds of privacy is logically the same as to say a child born at home could be killed by the parents with impunity provided the child has never been out in public.

To require a clause insuring the safety of the mother is to predispose the system toward murder of the infant. In any medical procedure there are levels of risk. Those levels must be factored into a decision to take extreme action. One situation might include relatively minor risk to the mother and extreme risk to the infant. Another might be the opposite. Most would fall in between. Why not presuppose the obvious, medical professionals have an obligation to protect the life of both the mother and the child to the extent possible? If a qualifying clause is necessary, why not one that insures the doctor will act to preserve the life of the individual (mother or child) with the greatest chance for survival? Or perhaps a clause ensuring the doctor will act in behalf of the individual with the greatest medical need but without jeopardizing the survival of the other. Or, if there must be a clause to protect the mother and doctor, why not outlaw late term abortions except when deemed necessary to save the life (a more clear and higher standard than “safety”) of the mother? However, I don’t understand why any clause is needed; if any human being takes action to save a life while acting reasonably to not endanger others there is no culpability. Doctors would merely need to inform the mother prior to delivery of their priorities in extreme situations, i.e., if I must choose I will save your life or vice versa.

As implied above, a late term abortion should not even be called an abortion. When an unborn child is close to full term, the termination of a pregnancy in a manner that terminates the life of the child does not just terminate (abort) a pregnancy, it murders a human being. As stated in a previous post, I am not a physician, but it is beyond my comprehension how the murder of an unborn or partially born, nearly full term baby can in any way contribute to the safety of the mother. It seems to me it could only jeopardize the mother’s safety. The only reason for killing a nearly full term baby is the convenience of the mother and society.

Barack Obama has consistently refused to support efforts to end late term abortions. He has stated he would support a ban on late term abortions if it included exemptions for the safety of the mother. (He has also repeatedly asserted his support for Roe v. Wade, but I am not addressing here that generalized commitment.) I cannot vote for a candidate who refuses to act to end the legalized murder of innocent children. I cannot fathom how any God fearing person can vote for such a candidate. I choose to not condemn my brothers and sisters in Christ who support Obama. I do not know their hearts; I trust they are guided by godly desires for a just society. I challenge them that there can never be a just society that fails to defend the life and liberty of its weaker members. We can never achieve equal opportunity much less equal access to the necessities of life if we refuse to defend the fundamental right to life. Thus, I fear we will all suffer the consequences of not taking a united stance on this fundamental issue. Late term abortions are grievous sin that defiles the image of God and defies his life giving presence.

My Evangelical friends who support Obama frequently respond, “I am pro-life in all of its forms; I oppose war and abortion; that is why I support Obama.” Give me a break; try some logic. The legitimacy of war is not an issue between McCain and Obama. Both have made it clear they favor war to fight terrorism. Neither is pro-life in the sense of opposing war. Their difference is in the execution of war. Obama said we should not invade Iraq; but he also said we should send more troops to Afghanistan and fight more aggressively there. I have often said I cannot be a Democrat because their party seems to always get us into war (Jimmy Carter being the sole exception in the last 100 years -- see my series in September on “Why I am a Republican”).

In summary, the foremost reason I cannot vote for Obama is his consistent refusal to act within his positions of authority to help end the practice of murdering late term babies. Some will consider this language too strong and offensive. They have not begun to consider the offense of late term abortions to ourselves, our futures, our nation, our world, and our God.