Ron Fournier of the Associated Press reports that John Kerry, who
voted to confirm Antonin Scalia in 1986, "said yesterday he's open to
nominating anti-abortion judges as long as that doesn't lead to the
Supreme Court overturning the landmark 1973 ruling that made abortion
legal," disappointing defenders of reproductive choice: "Kerry's
comments on judicial nominations drew a concerned response from the
Planned Parenthood Action Fund, with President Gloria Feldt saying,
'I'd like to hear him use language that is stronger'" ("I Could
Appoint an Anti-Abortion Jurist, Kerry Says," The Seattle Times, May
20, 2004). Moreover, Kerry calls "himself a strict constructionist, a
phrase Bush has used to describe himself" (May 20, 2004).Will liberal feminist organizations such as Planned Parenthood, NARAL, and NOW continue to give the Democratic Party a blank check? Or will they be able to reassess their electoral strategy and tactics, demanding unconditional commitment to feminist positions on abortion and other issues of crucial importance to women in exchange for feminist votes? Not very likely. Kerry's latest overture to the right, however, should prompt rethinking among rank-and-file feminists who have carefully surveyed the terrain of the real battleground of reproductive rights and freedoms today. . . .
The rest of the posting is at <http://montages.blogspot.com/2004/05/kerry-could-appoint-anti-abortion.html>. -- Yoshie
* Critical Montages: <http://montages.blogspot.com/> * Bring Them Home Now! <http://www.bringthemhomenow.org/> * Calendars of Events in Columbus: <http://sif.org.ohio-state.edu/calendar.html>, <http://www.freepress.org/calendar.php>, & <http://www.cpanews.org/> * Student International Forum: <http://sif.org.ohio-state.edu/> * Committee for Justice in Palestine: <http://www.osudivest.org/> * Al-Awda-Ohio: <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Al-Awda-Ohio> * Solidarity: <http://www.solidarity-us.org/>
