Some of you who've know me from my initial time here on DailyKos know that I've been outspoken about reproductive health and rights issues; about how infuriated I was that the term "pro-life" gets used by people who are anything but; how, if they really cared about driving the abortion rate down, they'd do it via increased access to healthcare services, education, etc, since making it illegal would never work- and would not only undermines a woman's autonomy, would only make things worse.
Unequivocally, my position is: Roe versus Wade needs vigorous defending because the Republicans are on a long term mission to repeal it- and defending it is precisely what I intend to do as a legislator here in Virginia. TRAP laws, as I have borne witness to first hand (and in graphic detail as an Emergency Department nurse) as someone who actually PROVIDES abortion care, are merely run-arounds in an attempt to kneecap that law. And nobody should abide a politician who is okay with removing the power- the choice- of anyone, particularly women, have over making decisions about their own body. And I will fight tooth and nail to make sure the right for people to choose is never infringed. I support women’s freedom to choose 100% their healthcare, including reproductive issues.
But it’s clear I didn’t do enough to articulate that properly in that diary two months ago, or since then, if folks have to wonder if that’s really the case. Being a completely new candidate in an environment filled with folks trying to destroy the Democratic traditions and freedoms we enjoy in an unashamed way never before seen in our country, it was enough to make folks wonder if I would waver on that; if I'd stand up to protect Roe versus Wade, or if I would ever allow the government to make decisions for anyone, and any woman, in particular.
That's a hundred percent on me. I'm a candidate for State Legislature. It ain't anyone's fault but my own if people don't understand what I mean. And unfortunately, the nuance I used to explain it over the past few months only made it worse, instead of better. Even my explanation of being an ER Nurse didn't help, as I had pointed out to me, because unfortunately there are those in the medical profession who are more than willing to put their own beliefs over doing what's right for their patients- as if those beliefs are somehow more important than a patient's decisions over their own health.
If I actually intend to win, and I do, then I can't abide that situation.
I am a little deflated, I'll admit, because when I launched my campaign, I had a great plan. I was going to take back the words “pro-life,” you see. I was going to hit my opponent with everything it really means to be supportive of life itself— especially for vulnerable populations outside the womb. Those politicians have been using and manipulating people with that term “pro-life” for eons now, even though their policies more often than not bring misery and death.
The Republican party (to their "credit", insofar as such things go) have done a marvelous job of redefining the term "pro-life" from what it actually means— outlawing abortion and shaming women— to get people to believe it means something
I've even seen members of my own family taken in by that, this fall having to watch as they would brag about voting for "the only pro-life candidate in the race!" It galls me even to write that here, the sincere tragedy of a statement like that, especially here in Virginia, with the irony of “pro-life” politicians denying Medicaid expansion to 400,000 working Virginians, and creating more primary care deserts in our rural areas. They call themselves “pro-life” yet are anti-refugee, anti-education (including pre-k), and seek to cut children's nutrition assistance. All things that lay bare their actual motives.
But while all that is true, my attempt to take that issue head-on left too many folks confused as to where I stood. Even my diary from a couple months ago, much in the same vein as this one, either didn’t get read or wasn’t clear enough. And though it’s true that anyone who sat me down and asked me about this in detail understood what I meant, and what I was driving at, enough to mollify any concern they had, unless I intend to sit down with every single person in my district... that's just not gonna cut it. And people around here want to support a viable candidate with a plan to win, not someone who, even though he supports the exact same things they do, has to spend an hour decrying the woeful state of things and give a twenty point presentation about what he feels before you finally go “Ahhh. I get it now.”
And in particular, too, they want to know if I screw up, I'll admit it, instead of being annoyed people didn't get my nuance. And I'm more than happy to admit that fully. It doesn't matter if my intentions were always good, what matters is the outcome; the road to Hell is paved with good intentions.
So I hope this admission that being perceived as having ambiguity is my fault, and not acceptable, and outlining for finality what I believe will settle those concerns. Please know that I most certainly am not ambiguous on this issue... nor is my opponent. He has made his stance on women's reproductive rights clear in his many years in office. At every turn, he has continually attempted to erode the rights of women in Virginia to make health decisions for themselves.
For everyone who has questioned and commented, thank you for encouraging me to clean up my language. And I mean that sincerely. If you hadn’t, I would never have known, because I thought I was 110% clear about where I stood. It's actually been this community that came together and made me understand that, which I can't tell you how much I appreciate. The desire to help me succeed as a candidate, despite the sometimes thousands of miles that separate us, means more to me than I can tell you.
Thanks to everyone here, in this outstanding community.