NEW YORK, August 10, 2016 (PriestsforLife) — Priests for Life released a side-by-side comparison of the Republican and Democratic party platforms that shows stark differences when it comes to the rights of the unborn, religious liberty, marriage and the family and respect for the U.S. Constitution. The guide is legally qualified to be distributed in Churches.
“We talk about voting with a clear conscience, which means you can’t vote against your values,” said Father Frank Pavone, National Director of Priests for Life. “But to vote with a clear conscience, one must consider that elections not only put individual candidates into power; they put political parties into power.
“The same questions you ask about the candidates’ positions on issues have to be asked of the party's positions. The party platform expresses its philosophy, and its policy preferences. If that party comes into power, what people will they assign to committees, and what bills will they allow to come for a vote? What type of people will be in the administration and on the staff of the elected official; what kind of appointments will that individual make?
“Even if an individual candidate is weak on a particular issue, the party platform signals the direction in which he or she will be guided and influenced by staff and advisers, and by constituents. And in the case of a President, the party platform gives a clear signal of the type of philosophy that will prevail, under that President, at the Department of Health and Human Services, at the Department of Justice, in the Surgeon General's office, in the federal courts, in the Supreme Court, and in thousands of other positions in many federal agencies.
“The US Catholic bishops have written, 'We urge our fellow citizens to choose their political leaders based on principle, not on party affiliation or mere self-interest' (Living the Gospel of Life, n.34). Many vote for candidates because of loyalty to a party, without examining the party platform. Our moral duty requires us to look deeper, and our comparison of the Democratic and Republican platforms will help voters do exactly that.”
To download a copy of the party platform comparison, go to www.politicalresponsibility.com