Pro-Life Democrat Says He's a Christian First
by Rusty Pugh and Jody Brown
May 26, 2004
(AgapePress) - A Tennessee lawmaker says being a Democrat doesn't prevent him from being pro-life.Nathan Vaughn is a Democratic Tennessee state representative, but he is also a strong believer in the sanctity of human life. But given the Democratic Party's support of abortion on demand in all forms, it raises the question: Is there a conflict?
"It really isn't a problem for me, and one of the things that I tell people is that, number one, I'm a Christian," Vaughn says. "As a Christian, I don't believe that you can have any other perspective [on the issue of abortion] other than pro-life, because God is the One who decides life.
"It's not about us, it's about Him -- and so I don't have a problem at all in terms of being a Democrat and also being someone who's pro-life."
Vaughn says his colleagues in Nashville respect his views. "[Fellow Democrats] in Nashville do not give me a hard time about it," he explains. "They accept me and the ideas that I deeply believe in. No one pressures me into believing any particular way. I don't know how it would be at a national level."
Like most Democrats on Capitol Hill, John Kerry -- arguably the most high-profile Democrat currently on the national scene -- has voiced his staunch support for Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 Supreme Court ruling that legalized abortion in America. The party's presumptive nominee for president stated last week that if he were elected to the White House, he might appoint pro-life judges to the federal bench -- but not to the Supreme Court.
"I will not appoint somebody, with a 5-4 court, who's about to undo Roe v. Wade," Kerry said. "I've said that before. But that doesn't mean that if that's not the balance of the court, I wouldn't be prepared ultimately to appoint somebody to some court who has a different point of view."
Kerry aides later explained that "some court" was not a reference to the Supreme Court, only lower federal benches. "I will not appoint anyone to the Supreme Court who will undo that right" to abortion, Kerry said in a clarifying statement. A spokesman for President Bush's re-election campaign said Kerry was just trying to have it both ways.
When asked if he supports Kerry, Nathan Vaughn would say only that he examines the views of each individual candidate and does not vote strictly on party lines.
