A Common Ground?

Former president George W. Bush was recently honored by a Catholic organization, Legatus, for “eight years of pro-life policies” while in office. Among other things, the group notes his opposition to stem cell research and his appointment of anti-choice Supreme Court judges as among his qualifications for the award. Perhaps surprisingly, this decision has not been without some controversy, even in “pro-life” circles.

In a brief piece in the Washington Post, one writer lays out a few thoughts, which boil down to this: How can Bush be “pro-life” when he was incredibly eager to start wars and when he tacitly signed off on myriad executions as governor of Texas? Another author (this one from a more moderate Catholic organization) wonders the same thing, and adds Bush’s opposition to the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) as more evidence of his lack of “pro-life” credentials.

While I know that these views are most likely not the majority opinion in the anti-choice movement, it is nice to see some individuals who identify as “pro-life” examine these issues so closely and rationally. So often, it seems like there’s absolutely no room for agreement between pro-choice and anti-choice individuals; in fact, most of the time, it seems that the gulf between the two groups is expanding exponentially.

But it’s helpful and reassuring to see a “pro-life” organization call Bush (a hero to many in that movement) out for his hypocrisy… as well as express support for health care policies that can reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies. As our current president has said, this is something that everyone should be able to agree is important… and it’s rather encouraging to me to see individuals on the other side of things, generally so hyperbolic (with their birth control=abortion rantings), begin to take some steps towards a common ground. What do you think?