I'm involved with Democratic politics down here in South Texas

[LeftInTX]

Here are a few facts:

Generalizations..(We have our progressives, but I'm describing the majority of Democrats)

Democrats here tend to be somewhat socially conservative
They are even more conservative in the Rio Grande Valley..(Henry Cuellar)
Democrats are overwhelmingly Latino or African American.
Most of my friends go to church every week...I'm the lazy hold out
We don't discuss reproductive rights because other issues are more important
Latinos are majority Catholic and even among Democrats abortion or abortion rights is not something they feel comfortable discussing.

Of course they are upset about SB 8, because it is so horrendous...But the majority of reproductive limitations in the past do not appear to have angered them to the point that it flips elections.

Sen Eddio Lucio Jr (D- Brownsville) voted for the anti-abortion bill.


Then we have our Progressive voters

They tend to be white...
Democrats who are involved with Planned Parenthood tend to be white and tend to have more money.
However, white Democrats are the minority here...

Based on this, the Republicans feel that there will not be a huge rebellion in Texas....

[brush]

1. Maybe not in Texas, bit nationwide could be a different story...

as other red states will do copycat laws which could very well affect the upcoming mid-terms.

[blm]

2. This post on FB is good to aim at pro-life Dems in Texas

Larisa Alexandrovna Horton

Question for all fathers:
Someone - for whatever reason - decides out of malice to report your daughter to the abortion hotline. They don’t need proof. They can remain anonymous. But your daughter then has to prove she did not have an abortion. So you have to then take your 10, 11, 12 year old child to the doctor or face jail or a fine. Is that ok with you? If the answer is no, then it does not matter what your views on abortion are. SB8 includes this as part of the law. If you are not ok with this Soviet shit. Why are you quiet?

[DUgosh]

4. Cheerleader tryouts

Are brutal. I can only imagine the calls from the soccer Moms trying to reduce the field of applicants so their daughter has less competition

[blm]

9. Typical Texas mom

[LeftInTX]

5. This is good....Thx

[Zeitghost]

19. That's not how the law works

And for the record I am not defending it, merely explaining how it works...

The person getting the abortion can not be sued, only those assisting the woman.

[blm]

22. It's the reporting that an abortion occurred.

The immediate aftermath of that malicious reporting.

The writer didn’t mention the aspect of getting sued.

[Zeitghost]

24. They claimed

That you would have to bring your minor child in to prove they did not have an abortion or risk a fine or jail.

That is not how this (horrible) law works.


Like I said, I'm not defending it, simply pointing out who is at risk of legal action.

[Mersky]

6. How tolerating other people's beliefs on when life begins might be helpful

Honestly, I need to go talk to Dems in south Texas. Been way too long. I find nuance on the topic in conservative circles in central Texas. We’ve faced a lot of health related heartache in Texas over COVID, and what’s burns me to no end is the anti-choice machine using people’s honest, religious beliefs to get away with corruption and advance policies that are destroying the planet and keeping people down for profits.

The ‘heartbeat’ bill name is a misnomer. At six weeks, it’s the electrical sound applied to the detection of the fluttering movement from a small cluster of cells the size of a lentil on the thickened edge of the yolk sac. How to discuss that it’s a healthcare decision up until the time of viability needs to be reiterated. That when life begins is not settled by this dastardly law for a country of wide ranging beliefs.

Too, banning abortion does not reduce abortion rates. Increases in standards of living, education, access to healthcare (esp women) leads to better options/decisions and rates.

In person, have heard more nuance on abortion views than wanting a total ban, even if it goes against one’s own beliefs, including Catholics and evangelicals.

[LeftInTX]

11. Yes, that is what I hear "more nuanced abortion views"

There are also the rural Democrats. They're a good group. Pro-public education. Nuance on guns.

[Mersky]

12. But did you hear the bolded part?

The less nuanced part? Cuz that gets traction in my goings around, which admittedly have been clipped due to the COVID year. A total abortion ban isn’t prolife if the goal is to stop abortions. Spying on and reporting people like it’s 1939, gah! Wtaf?!

I’m a Texan, I own guns, but I’m not an idiot. Beto wasn’t ever going to confiscate guns door to door. El Paso had just happened the month prior to being asked that question. How’s that for nuance?

[LeftInTX]

13. Yes, most conservative Democrats and some Republicans don't want a total ban...

And this spying shit is crazy.
I don't think they will win over supporters.

It may help the GOP in the primary to get the most crazy one in, but it's not gonna help in the general.

[Mersky]

17. I agree - GQP only lost support in my family

Which is the basis for my grapevine acid test polling/vibes. I’m related to like half the people in one county and they’ve been frozen, flooded, whipped around, sick, and forced to put up with maskless idiots patronizing their businesses as friends (didn’t vaccinate or mask) go into the hospital with COVID. Gets easier to get real when you’ve all been through it.

Totally agree with your take right there. The death, lies, and theocratic/fascistic abortion ban only works for the diehard zealots in the repug primary.

I adore south Texas, and really need to get down there this next year.

[irisblue]

7. Thank you for posting your observations LeftInTX

Last edited Fri Sep 3, 2021, 07:14 AM - Edit history (1)

[Vinca]

8. I wish people like the Democratic conservatives could realize it doesn't matter whether you're

"pro-life" or "pro-abortion" (I despise both terms by the way), the point is a woman should have a choice. "Pro-choice." They need to keep their noses out of the private lives of women.

[LeftInTX]

10. Most are neutral, pro-life in their personal lives, but understanding and compassionate of others

Last edited Fri Sep 3, 2021, 01:39 PM - Edit history (5)

Moderate Democrats generally don't put their noses in others private lives.

Most are OK with issues to reduce abortion, (like ultra-sound, pre-procedural counseling, resources for single parents etc). So they haven't been too vocal as abortion rights have been whittled away. Wendy Davis did not ring with many voters because they just weren't angry enough over restrictions that were legislated in 2013.

The overwhelming majority do not support banning abortion. In the last 30 years, abortion rates have come down due to better birth control availability and more options for single parents. But the downside is an increase in poverty. Most single Hispanic women who do become pregnant have family support, which is very different than white families.


The state senator that I mentioned is kind of a jerk. He's 75 and was primaried last year. The primary went to a runoff. I do feel that the district could elect someone who is more progressive, but Lucio has been in office a long time. He also has been supportive of school choice, but keeps getting re-elected. I'm hoping his opponent will run again in 2024. I don't know exactly why he voted for this bill. Maybe he was compromising with someone..The Texas State Senate is a brutal place....The bill was gonna pass with or without his vote...But still it sends a stark message.

***************************************************


I know there are "Democrats for Life" out there, but they're an entirely different group....They are a very small group, a bit crazy and don't have much influence: https://www.democratsforlife.org/

Democrats for Life aren't moderate, they're radical. They kinda remind me of PETA.

[DFW]

18. In my experience

So-called “Pro-Life” people are NOT that. They ARE against abortion rights and the notion of choice. However, they are not against the death penalty, they are not against killing animals to eat their meat, and they do not protest when abortion providers are murdered. That’s about as Pro-life as Louie Gohmert is pro-erudition.

[LeftInTX]

20. The Democrats for Life are like PETA -Extremely anti-death penalty

No taking of any human life any time, anywhere.

They are extremely anti death penalty, even when many Democrats shrug at the death penalty, they are totally against it.

Check out the link.

[LeftInTX]

21. Oops..sorry my link wasn't working

https://www.democratsforlife.org/

[Aristus]

14. Maybe college students and skilled workers can help change things.

I bash my home-state of Texas as much as anyone. But I know that it is home to some of the finest universities in the country. I don't know what percentage of the aggregate student bodies are native Texans, and how many attend from out of state. But if out of state students choose to attend university somewhere else, might that make a difference?

Will skilled, college-educated workers abandon Texas for someplace less medieval?

[LeftInTX]

15. I think most college students are Texas residents

There are private universities, but the majority of college students are at community college and public universities

I think the main reason college-educated transplants eventually abandon Texas: The weather and every day life: lack of parks, lack of public transportation, walkability, etc.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

16. I have watched two Texas Democratic Party presentations on polling on 2020

I grew up in the Rio Grande Valley but have not been down there since we interned my mon 9 years ago. I have a high school classmate who I recruited to help on the Texas Democratic Lawyers Association. It is interesting talking to her from time to time about the Valley

The two state party presentations on 2020 were interesting. The numbers geek for the party is a numbers geek but I enjoyed his presentation but I like math. I was shocked to see the videos of the TFG car rallies/parades/caravans. The party acknowledged that the messaging to Hispanic voters missed the mark in 2020 and many of these voters were more focused on jobs and economics than social issues. A surprising number of Hispanic voters supported TFG due to concerns about socialism and losing jobs. The use of Socialism and Defund the Police evidently helped TFG to do better in the Valley than anyone expected. The findings of these polls and studies are very consistent with your observations.

The Hispanic voting population is very diverse and we need to tailor the messaging to address a number of concerns. I know that the state party is working on these issues and I will be interested seeing if they can make progress.

BTW, my friend/classmate and I are both white democrats who are not in the Sanders wing of the party

Thank you for your post.

[carpetbagger]

23. Cuellar is well to the right of his constituency.

He's a sitting duck for his primary challenge (he only got the nomination 51-48), depending on how he is redistricted. Latinos poll higher than Anglo and Black voters on abortion rights. I suspect the dividing line is rather along gender and religious lines (protestant Latinos against abortion rights, Catholic for).

I agree that our Spanish language messaging is embarrassing, and Spanish language right wing social media is a nightmare that makes English language bs look rather tame and factual.

[greenjar_01]

25. The test will be whether children of white GOP voters still have relatively easy access to abortion

They make these rules for others, not for themselves.