Conservative Group to Give Strong Support to Planned Parenthood

They Just Don’t Know it Yet

One of the more unusual characteristics of the current political scene is the proliferation of pledges that Republican candidates are expected to sign.  This started with our old friend, Grover Norquist who requires candidates to pledge they will not raise taxes.  It is now spread to a group in Iowa that has this in the pre-amble to their pledge

"Slavery had a disastrous impact on African-American families, yet sadly a child born into slavery in 1860 was more likely to be raised by his mother and father in a two-parent household than was an African-American baby born after the election of the USA's first African-American President.

Now the Dismal Political Economist is going to forego commenting on the condescending and mildly racist nature of this language, particularly since the group has since apologized and changed the wording.  A spokesperson is quoted as saying

We came up with the pledge and so we had no idea that people would misconstrue that," she said. "It was not meant to be racist or anything. it was just a fact that back in the days of slavery there was usually a husband and a wife...we were not saying at all that things are better for African-American children in slavery days than today."

And the Dismal Political Economist is not going to comment on the fact that even Conservative groups now seem to recognize that slavery was not particularly a good thing for children, in fact we are glad the group has come around to that position.

Instead The Dismal Political Economist wants to focus on the policy implications here.  Obviously this Group feels that two parent families are better than one parent families, and that it is better that children be raised in two parent families and that  government policy should be undertaken to discourage and even prevent unplanned single parent households (they are pursuing a political agenda after all). 

So what should government do?  Well Conservative Groups certainly do not want government directly involved in family planning since they are opposed to government being directly involved in anything, and so they must be looking for an agency or organization that government could support who would carry out the policy.  Such an agency would support health and reproductive education  and provide family planning services and medical help so that the number of unplanned pregnancies and resulting single family households is reduced. 

Hmm, can anyone think of such an agency, one with a long record of successful family planning practices and results, one large enough to be effective, one that has a nationwide reputation for doing exactly what these Conservative Groups want to be done in the family planning area? 

Wait a minute, how about Planned Parenthood! 

Yes, they meet all the criteria, so look for family oriented Conservative groups to start strongly supporting government funding of Planned Parenthood clinics.  These clinics provide family planning education and conraception so that less children are born into single family households, and as added bonus, reduce the number of abortions because they reduce the number of unintended pregnancies.  What a great group for supporting Conservative values.

Okay, don’t look too hard.  Consistent and logical policy initiatives has never been the hallmark of these groups.  And really, really do not look in New Hampshire.

Planned Parenthood has stopped providing birth control pills and other contraception in New Hampshire after the state's executive council rejected up to $1.8 million in funding for the group, which also provides privately-funded abortions.

As to why New Hampshire should do such a thing to low income women, well here is the explanation.

I am opposed to abortion," said Raymond Wieczorek, a council member who voted against the contract. "I am opposed to providing condoms to someone. If you want to have a party, have a party but don't ask me to pay for it."

So the logic apparently goes, we don’t want abortion so we won’t provide contraception for women to prevent unintended pregnancies that lead to abortion because we do not support abortion.

The tortuous logic of Conservatives, officially branded as Torture by the Geneva Convention.