Chatting with Chuck Todd on NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday, Democratic House minority leader Nancy Pelosi says “of course” a Democrat can be pro-life.
“I have served many years in Congress with members who have not shared my very positive — my family would say aggressive — position on promoting a woman’s right to choose,” she said.
But Pelosi quickly changed the topic, insisting that Todd was really asking her a question about values.
“People say to me all the time, ‘You do such a good job of unifying House Democrats.’ I say, ‘I don’t.’ Our values unify us. We are unified by our commitment to America’s working families: about job creation, about budget policies that invest in the future, good paying jobs and that’s what we like to see a debate on vis-a-vis the president of the United States.”
Pelosi was asked about the pro-life beliefs and Democratic policies following a recent controversy surrounding Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders’ decision to endorse the Heath Mello, the Democratic candidate for mayor of Omaha, Nebraska, who happens to be pro-life.
“I want him to win,” Sanders told NPR Thursday after a rally in Grand Prairie, Texas.
That prompted a flurry of criticism from pro-abortion advocates like Ilyse Hogue, who criticized both Sanders and DNC Chair Tom Perez for devoting time and resources to campaign for a Democrat who is pro-life.
“The actions today by the DNC to embrace and support a candidate for office who will strip women – one of the most critical constituencies for the party – of our basic rights and freedom is not only disappointing, it is politically stupid,” Hogue said. “Today’s action makes this so-called ‘fight back tour’ look more like a throw-back tour for women and our rights.”
Mello is the co-sponsor of some pro-life legislation in Nebraska, including a 2009 bill that directs doctors to inform women who want to have an abortion about the ultrasound technology.