Marie Newman unseats one of the last anti-abortion Democrats in Illinois’s 3rd District

After well over two years of trying by progressive Democrats, Rep. Dan Lipinski will no longer represent Illinois’s Third Congressional District in the House.
Challenger Marie Newman defeated the longtime representative — who’s also one of the last remaining anti-abortion Democrats — in the Democratic primary on Tuesday night.
Newman, an anti-bullying activist endorsed by the Justice Democrats, also ran against Lipinski in 2018. That year, she fell just short, coming within 2.5 points of unseating him; on Tuesday, she eked out a win, according to Vox’s partners at Decision Desk.

https://www.vox.com/2020/3/17/21184672/marie-newman-dan-lipinski-illinois-primary-results

Long overdue.

One of the House's last anti-abortion Democrats goes down in the Primary.

Winning this Primary is tantamount to election (in a district Dems. carried with 73% in 2018.).

Is this the newest member of "The Squad"?

Thoughts?

 

I am a rare bird. I want a party that has room for pro-life Dems. At least the ones that want to provide a minimum wage hike, and a decent social welfare safety net for families, including funding for SNAP, Medicaid, etc. They are willing to invest in these families. If our tent is not big enough for them, where else should we shrink it?

 

How can you possibly be anti-abortion and a democrat?

 

It actually wasn't all that uncommon among Democrats holding office in the 70's and early 80's. There were a lot of conflicted Dems and Dems who evolved one way or the other, Humphrey, Ted Kennedy Dick Durbin, Jesse Jackson, Dick Gephardt, Al Gore, Harry Reid was an only- in- special- cases, 'evolved' into pro choice. McGovern Carter were very conflicted, and Sargent Shriver, Bob Casey, and Frank Church were definitely pro life. Here's a recent poll by Marist http://www.kofc.org/un/en/resources/news-room/polls/americans-opinions-abortion.pdf
Pro-Life Pro-Choice Unsure
Democrat 17% 78% 5%
Republican 71% 28% 1%
Independent 40% 57% 4%

 

Dan Lipinski should mount a "write in" campaign.
Send a message to the DNC not to be involved in local affairs.
He might get funding & votes from like minded anti abortion folks



Moi

Abort ​

 

I am finding that all Democrats do not have cult like views like the other side of the coin does.

 

It seems one must pass a litmus test to become a Democrat.

 

Exactly.

Much like the current "GOP Litmus Test" of worshipping at the Altar of Trump.

Both parties have their litmus tests.

 

care to show evidence that the Democratic National Committee played any role in this result? What exactly did the DNC do in this race?

 

I believe it should be more like a questionnaire than a test. As long as you can convince the voters in the primary to hire based on those answers, (I emphasize The plural here) I am all good. For a long time my litmus test was Capital Punishment, but I gave it up for Obama. Smart Choice. Single issue voting is too simplistic too narrow minded. Now if the same candidate is pro-life, pro capital punishment, against ERA, a member of the NRA, anti civil liberties, wants to sunset the Civil Rights Act, and opposes marriage equality, it gets ridiculous. we have a real problem having them chairing committees or even allowing them in the caucus,, he needs to do what Strom Thurmond did and Zell Miller should have done.

 

Of course, another big "qualifier" would be what sort of District is involved.

In Newman's District (where winning the Dem. Primary is Tantamount to Election) where it skews Deep Blue 73% Democratic, her positions would be much more accepted than in a General Election in a 50/50 sort of Swing District.

 

That's why both major parties are shrinking. In 2006, those who identified themselves as Democrats were 37%, Republicans 32% independents 30%. Today, at least according to Gallup its Democrats 31%, Republicans 27%, Independents 40%. Of course those number vary month to month, they dynamic.

It seems both major parties only want true believers, the ideological pure. First Democrats got rid of their southern conservatives, the Republicans their Rockefeller liberal Republicans of the northeast, now both are ridding themselves of moderates.

But with our two party system, there's no place for moderates and independents to go. All we can do is vote for one party one election, the other the next election, etc. Since Republicans and Democrats write our election laws, they do as a mutual protection act. They have more power today than when they made up 70-80% of the electorate. One thing is for sure, they'll never give up their monopoly.