Condi Rice: "Mildly" Pro-Choice

Sheesh, I'm getting sick to death of always being right. I've long maintained that the idea of Condi Rice is, like the abstract idea of any political candidate whose views remain a mystery, likely to be much more attractive than the reality.

Now, as many of you have guessed, I'm mildly pro-choice myself. Mildly, though I still maintain Roe v. Wade was an unscrupulous and unconvincing SC decision. I favor some abortion rights, but determined, as the Constitution provides, by the people actually chosen to legislate-- you know, actual legislators.

Still, this takes much of the wind out of the sails of a Condi bid for the Republican nomination, whether as President or Vice-President.

I suppose she could attempt a fudge position that holds that, while she favors as a policy matter a mildly pro-choice position, she believes that judges ought to remain out of this business altogether, and perhaps that will be enough to persuade pro-life conservatives to support her, or at least not desert her entirely in a general election.

But I think that sort of highly, ahem, nuaced position -- while making perfect sense as a matter of logic -- just doesn't really work in quick soundbites and "where they stand" bullet-points. And, alas, that's about as much about politics as most people care to know.

And I see I was wrong about one thing:

"I never wanted to run for anything — I don't think I even ran for class anything when I was in school," she said. "I'm going to try to be a really good secretary of state; I'm going to work really hard at it.

"I have enormous respect for people who do run for office. It's really hard for me to imagine myself in that role."

She was then pressed on whether she would rule out a White House bid by reprising Gen. William T. Sherman's 1884 declaration: "If nominated, I will not run; if elected, I will not serve."

"Well, that's not fair," she protested with a chuckle. "The last thing I can — I really can't imagine it."

Translation: she's running.

Pro-Lifers Okay With Condi?: This is only anecdotal, of course, but Josh doesn't have a problem with her position, at least as we can guess at it:

As an ardently anti-abortion Christian Republican, I really don't give a shit what Condi's (or any other GOP presidential candidate) position on abortion is (unless there's some evidence she intends to use the bully pulpit to drum up business for Planned Parenthood). So long as she promises to appoint judges who will repeal Roe and return the issue to the state legislatures where it belongs, I'm fine.

Trouble is that a mildly pro-choice candidate will probably balk at appointing that fifth vote on the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade.

In fact, even announced pro-lifers seem to have trepidation about doing so.

posted by Ace at 02:37 PM

| Access Comments