Republicans Losing Because They Won’t Play Hardball on Abortion

Four years ago, I talked to Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Brady before the annual summer Family PAC Cruise.

Personal PAC had just begun what turned out to be a relentless whacking of Brady on his Pro-Life position on abortion.

He was being labeled “an extremist.”

Bill Brady on the 2010 Family PAC Cruise. Jim Oberweis is to the right.

I told Brady that he had to reply.

He told me that his polling figures had actually increased since the ad went up.

After thinking about possible reasons for the counter intuitive results, I’m wondering if there was some small percentage of people who did not know he was Pro-Life who jumped to his side after seeing the ads.

Brady lost by 31,834 votes.

This year Bruce Rauner made his first McHenry County appearance at the Pro-Life Pig Roast at Irene Napier’s home.

Bruce Rauner introduced himself to folks.

Bruce Rauner introduced himself to some of the younger folks at the 2013 McHenry County Pro-Life Pig Roast.

All four GOP hopefuls attended.

I suggested (and told the other candidates as well, two then and another later) that he should play the abortion card against Governor Pat Quinn the way that Personal PAC had done against Brady—paint Quinn as the “extremist.”

Any Republican with guts enough to point out that a Personal PAC opponent favored allowing mothers to abort their children after 8 months of pregnancy would surely pin that label on his or her opponent.

Rauner gave that idea thought, but obviously decided against pursuing the strategy.

After I talked with Rauner that day, despite his stated refusal to talk about abortion during the campaign, I was satisfied with what he said he would do, if elected.

Now, Illinois Review has discovered that Rauner is talking about abortion in his campaign.

It’s on a cable TV ad.

A woman says, “Bruce doesn’t have a social agenda. He’s pro-choice and will leave the marriage equality law alone.”

The two sides of the abortion are “Pro-Choice” and “Pro-Life.”

An update to the article reads,

“After viewing the ad, Illinois Family Action’s executive director David E. Smith told Illinois Review, ‘I’m shaking my head as to what that ad says. The Democrats are doing all they can to get their base out to vote in November, but the Rauner campaign is doing everything they can to alienate their base.’”

Quinn ahead in poll Trib 9-14-14Now the Chicago Tribune poll shows Rauner losing to Governor Pat Quinn by 48-37%.

Libertarian Party candidate Chad Grim is getting 5%.

If the Libertarian obtains 5% of the votes, the onerous petition threshold will not have to be met for statewide office for the next two election cycles because the Party would have gained the designation of an “established” Political Party.

8% are undecided.


Comments

Republicans Losing Because They Won’t Play Hardball on Abortion — 5 Comments

  1. Check out the details of the poll. 43 percent of voters identified themselves as Democrats while only 24 percent called themselves Republicans and 28 percent said they were independents

    Is this an attempt by the Tribune to force Bruce to come out in support of abortion?

  2. My thoughts as a woman. Illinois is a financial disaster.

    I wan’t a governor that will change almost everything about Illinois.

    I’d like to see big changes to the pension systems of all teachers, public employees etc.

    Even if it’s from this day forward it will be better than what we have now.

    Gay marriage is a civil rights issue and it’s here to stay.

    Nobody is running for Supreme Court Judge and last I checked, they have the only opinion that matters about abortion.

    Roll back the tax increase!

    P.S. ANY republican is better than Quinn regardless of how “anti” they are

  3. Being Pro-Choice is not the same as Pro Abortion.

    And the Mrs. couldn’t be more right.

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