DOLE ENDS PUSH ON ABORTION : GOP CANDIDATE DROPS LANGUAGE ON TOLERANCE.Byline: Associated Press Associated Press: see news agency. Associated Press (AP) Cooperative news agency, the oldest and largest in the U.S. and long the largest in the world. In a major victory for social conservatives, Bob Dole's campaign Monday abandoned an effort to add language to the Republican Party platform that sought ``tolerance'' of diverse opinions on abortion. The move elated staunch abortion foes, who had argued hard to keep pure the platform's hard-line language, including a call for a constitutional amendment banning abortion. Moderate Republicans who support abortion rights predicted Dole would suffer at the polls for backing down. Dole had wanted a new ``tolerance plank'' in the platform that recognized ``members of our party have deeply held and sometimes differing views on issues of personal conscience like abortion and capital punishment capital punishment, imposition of a penalty of death by the state. History Capital punishment was widely applied in ancient times; it can be found (c.1750 B.C.) in the Code of Hammurabi. .'' Faced with vehement objections from abortion foes, including primary rival Pat Buchanan  This article may be too long.Please discuss this issue on the talk page and help summarize or split the content into subarticles of an article series. and the Christian Coalition Christian Coalition, organization founded to advance the agenda of political and social conservatives, mostly comprised of evangelical Protestant Republicans, and to preserve what it deems traditional American values. , Dole lieutenants relented Monday and agreed to a generic statement of recognition for diversity of viewpoints. It does not specifically mention abortion or any other issue. It was not immediately clear if Dole was told of the shift in advance; spokesman Nelson Warfield said the campaign had no immediate comment. But the deal was blessed by campaign manager Scott Reed, Paul Manafort, Dole's convention manager, and Illinois Rep. Henry Hyde
Henry John Hyde (born April 18 1924), American politician, was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1975 to 2006, representing the 6th , the platform committee chairman. The vaguer language was approved Monday evening by the platform subcommittee handling abortion and is considered likely to be adopted by the full committee. ``We're just absolutely thrilled,'' said Christian Coalition executive director Ralph Reed Ralph Reed may refer to:
In contrast, Ann Stone of Republicans for Choice was angry that GOP supporters of abortion rights were again rebuffed in their effort to soften the platform's opposition to abortion. ``Our guys are disinvited - out again,'' Stone said. ``I'm very sad. We're here to save Bob Dole and the congressional majority. If they want to go off the cliff . . . so be it.'' Some abortion-rights backers, including California Gov. Pete Wilson For others named Pete Wilson, see . Peter Barton Wilson (born August 23, 1933) is an American Republican politician from California. Wilson served as the thirty-sixth Governor of California (1991–1999), the culmination of more than three decades in the public arena that and Massachusetts Gov. William Weld William Floyd Weld (born July 31, 1945, in Smithtown, New York) was the Republican Governor of Massachusetts from 1991 to 1997.[1] From 1981 to 1988, he was a federal prosecutor in the United States Justice Department. , have raised the prospect of a floor fight if social conservatives prevailed in the platform committee. But it was not clear if they would have the votes necessary to demand a floor debate or the stomach for a public bloodletting bloodletting, also called bleeding, practice of drawing blood from the body in the treatment of disease. General bloodletting consists of the abstraction of blood by incision into an artery (arteriotomy) or vein (venesection, or phlebotomy). that could hurt Dole. The agreement represents a remarkable turnabout for Dole, who has repeatedly insisted over the past two months that the party needed to reach out to women and other moderate voters by specifically acknowledging diversity of opinion on the abortion issue. While the deal is likely to quiet conservative criticism at the GOP convention, it could hamper Dole's effort to close the so-called gender gap in presidential polls. Democrats pounced on the deal. White House chief of staff Leon Panetta chalked it up to extremism in the GOP. ``I think it's unfortunate because Bob Dole himself supported a tolerance provision, and I think he was really trying to broaden the party so they could allow for women who really do want to make their own choices in these manners,'' Panetta said. On other issues, the draft platform endorses free trade while promising vigilance against unfair trade, supports immigration immigration, entrance of a person (an alien) into a new country for the purpose of establishing permanent residence. Motives for immigration, like those for migration generally, are often economic, although religious or political factors may be very important. limits while welcoming the immigrant influence in U.S. culture, and sketches Dole's plan to send more social responsibilities to the states. CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: Members of the Republican platform committee hold he arings Monday at the San Diego Concourse. Associated Press |
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