Election post mortem - life issues

Before the election, I wondered about what to do when all three congressional candidates are pro-choice. I posted the article here and on the Examiner, DailyKos, and Open Salon. In this article, I stated that when all candidates are pro-choice, (and even when they are not), the pro-life voting strategy should look at which candidate's party will increase or decrease the incidence of abortion. That candidate is usually the Democrat.

In Virginia 08, the Democrat won and will undoubtedly vote for policies that are better for families - especially given a likely Republican onslaught against economic policies that include what Catholic doctrine calls an option for the poor, both in tax subsidies and in benefit programs.

Overall, the pro-life cause suffers, as under the pressure of bad economic times, unemployment extensions beyond the Lame Duck session will likely cease and tax benefits for families will likely be reduced unless the current majority enacts the latter within the month on a permanent basis (the Making Work Pay credit enacted under the Recovery Act and the expanded Child Tax Credit enacted in 2001 by President Bush). Welfare reform will also likely include punitive measures, which Obama suspended in the Recovery Act, limiting welfare benefits - so it is likely that the number of abortions will eventually increase.

More specifically, part of the Republican wave was the replacement of 23 conservative, pro-life Democrats with Republicans. The net result on support for abortion is these cases is nil, but the support for policies that would reduce abortions is negative - so I would have to call the Republican wave a bad thing for the unborn. Pro-life activists (particularly at the highest levels of the Catholic Church) should look long and hard at their motives, given these results.