I wrote this column on why pro-lifers in Oregon should vote third party about a month ago for the Liberty; but as the election nears it seems that it won't be published in time. As such, I'm just posting it wherever in case my efforts can do some good. :)
Voting for the Party's Soul:
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“I knew, when I accepted the nomination for Constitution Party candidate for Oregon governor, that many Oregonians were planning to sit out this election simply because, once again, the candidates they had to choose from simply did not reflect their deepest held beliefs.” Mary Starrett
Pro-lifers in this state face a difficult decision come November. With two serious gubernatorial candidates, neither of them pro-life in any realistic sense, our options seem to come down to voting for the lesser of two evils, Republican Ron Saxton, or foregoing casting a vote altogether.
Oregon Right to Life has come down on the side of the former option. While not endorsing Ron Saxton per se, the political branch of ORTL voted to “recommend” Saxton, and praise him as the best realistic candidate in the voter guide they recently distributed.
Because of this, ORTL has been accused of compromising the pro-life cause in order to elect Republican candidates. However, their defense would be one of pragmatism. For the moment, Ron Saxton seems willing to make some concessions in order to appease the unhappy pro-life camp within the Republican Party. He has stated that he will support the upcoming parental notification measure that ORTL has been pushing; furthermore, he is in favor of reducing state subsidized abortions as well as a ban on partial-birth abortions (this is a complete reversal of his previous support for partial birth abortion, which he considered a “principled” stand back in 2002). Though Saxton seems a little squishy on the entire issue, ORTL is assuming that a possible something from Saxton will be better than the nothing they’ll certainly get from Kulongoski.
Having been fairly involved in the pro-life movement over the past few years, I’ve come to highly respect Oregon Right to Life and the work that they do. But while I believe they have the best interests of the pro-life cause at heart, I must disagree with their decision in this case. I have no intention of voting for Ron Saxton this November. However, I also have no intention of sitting this election out. Rather, I will be voting for Mary Starrett, Constitution party candidate and strong pro-lifer.
I’ll not go into detail regarding Starrett’s qualifications and goals. I do recommend Googling her name and checking out her campaign site (www.marystarrettforgovernor.com). But my purpose here is not to tout her as an excellent candidate, but rather, to explain the importance of Oregon pro-lifers voting third party in this gubernatorial election.
This will be the first time I’ve ever chosen to vote symbolically, supporting a third party candidate over a candidate with a realistic chance of winning. I tend to be more pragmatic, making concessions when necessary in order to get the most good out of a situation. Obviously, compromise is the only way we can accomplish anything politically.
But it is critical that we consider the long-term effects of those concessions, and know which issues cannot be compromised. Because I believe that abortion constitutes the murder of unborn children, I believe that this is one of those issues.
However, being pro-life is certainly inconvenient for the Oregon Republican Party; candidates would improve their overall electability if they dropped the issue altogether. They know it, and we know it. If the next Republican governor we elect is Saxton or any other pro-choice Republican, the message we appear to be conveying is this: the pro-life cause is nothing but a losing cause. Furthermore, it is a losing cause that can be dropped safely, because frankly, we pro-life saps will vote for the lesser of two evils every time. The Republican establishment would conclude that we’re not willing to vote for a loser, no matter what we have to give up.
There are many within the Republican Party who would love to treat social conservatives the way Democrats treat their black constituency: give them almost nothing, but get 90% of their vote anyway. And if Oregon pro-lifers vote for the pro-abortion Saxton in exchange for the promise of some minor concessions that is precisely what will happen to them.
I’m willing to vote for the losing cause, because I know that cause is right. Thus, I will be voting for Mary Starrett even though I know full well that she won’t win. I can only hope that others who are like-minded will join me in doing so, and that the Oregon Republican Party gets the message.
