Tim Kaine (Jim Young/Reuters)
Here's early Obama endorser, former DNC Chairman, and bellweather Virginia Senate candidate former Gov. Tim Kaine:
“I think the White House made a good decision in including a mandate for contraception coverage in the Affordable Care Act insurance policy, but I think they made a bad decision in not allowing a broad enough religious employer exemption,” Kaine said, according to a transcript of his remarks provided by his campaign.
“This is something that’s been talked about a lot today and I have definitely expressed my grave concerns to the White House about that. I support the contraception mandate but there should be a religious employer exemption that is broader than the one they proposed.”
Washington Post
Expect more Democrats to jump ship as this issue moves into the realm of Congressional action. I believe the goal is to split Democrats so as to attract the coveted "bipartisan" moniker, to make the President appear isolated.
So, it looks like this battle is not going to be avoided. Kaine is a sharp cookie and knows his state. He's running a pretty damn good campaign so far, so I'm pretty sure he's thought this thing through before speaking.
It looks to me like the White House is going to have to go on offense or cave. If Democrats are split, I see no incentive for the Church to compromise.