Rep. Ryan 'Booted' From "Democrats For Life Of America" For Supporting Contraception

U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) has been, in his words, "booted" from the national advisory board of Democrats For Life of America. The group's mission is to elect and support pro-life Democrats; Ryan served on the board for four years but the relationship had recently soured when he co-sponsored the "Preventing Unintended Pregnancies, Reducing the Need for Abortion and Supporting Parents Act":

Ryan said he tried to convince officials with Democrats For Life of America, which he referred to Monday as a "fringe group," that the use of contraception is needed as part of any plan to reduce unintended pregnancies but that failed.

Kristen Day, Democrats For Life's executive director, was ready to move on. "DFLA gave Congressman Ryan ample opportunities to prove he's committed to protecting life, but he has turned his back on the community at every turn."

Ryan insists he's still a strong pro-life advocate. The proposed bill includes funding for comprehensive "teen pregnancy prevention" sex education and expanded coverage of "family planning" for low-income women. "We're working in Congress with groups that agree with preventative options while [the DFLA] is getting left behind," Ryan said. "I can't figure out for the life of me how to stop pregnancies without contraception. Don't be mad at me for wanting to solve the problem."

More details about the split here.

Comments

[BetterDeadthanRedState]

Someone please tell me how to get in contact with this organization. I want to make sure that I'm kicked out, too.

[Joan Jacobs]

Since when did life begin pre-coitus?

[jerkzilla]

Can we just call this group what it realy is? "Republicans who want to Get Re-Elected." It's so simple. Here' the line in the sand. one one side you have Democrats. They're pro-choice. The other side is Republicans. They're anti-choice. Enough of this "big tent party" BS. You keep inviting people in your tent who refuse to believe in the principals of the Democrat party, pretty soon those principals will change. And honestly, the Dems are too close to being Republicans as it is. The last thing they need is more of their own members pushing them even further to the right.

[kilgore trout]

To quote M. Python... "Every sperm is sacred."

[alwqb]

You rally against abortion but don't want contraception available? What planet are these people living on?

[anney]

It's better to deny your partner sex than use contraception. Or have lots and lots of babies, even if the woman cannot possibly adequately care for so many children. None of that matters to these irresponsible people.

[JackNasty]

These anti-choice fanatics don't care about life. Calling them anything but anti-choice is dishonest. The only thing these zealots want is control over other people's bodies.

[JanSP1971]

The proposed bill includes funding for comprehensive "teen pregnancy prevention" sex education and expanded coverage of "family planning" for low-income women. "We're working in Congress with groups that agree with preventative options while [the DFLA] is getting left behind," Ryan said. "I can't figure out for the life of me how to stop pregnancies without contraception. Don't be mad at me for wanting to solve the problem."


Mr. Ryan you are right on with this statement. Right to life groups don't seem to want to do anything to really lower teen pregnancey or help with family planning all they really want to do is tell a woman what she can or can not do with her own body. They want to tell ALL women they have no choice at all,

[anney]

These folks should be shut up in a compound for 50 years and denied contraception and abortion. Baby after baby born, things getting more and more crowded until there's no room to move. Women becoming more and more cowed, dying young and leaving ten or twelve children for each man to feed and rear. Eventually no more women would be left except for any girls who survived.

It's a setup for infanticide...

[maryjflyfree]

these folks don't sound like dems but rather down low republicans... what tha?

[medicinecat]

Democrats for Life? Time for those who stand with the GOP on this issue to hit the road and join the Republican party. Like the Democrats who are destroying our chances for health care, these traitors are not welcome.

[toxicbrainpoison]

Doesnt contraception prevent abortion? Man they want you to create as many babies as possible (so that we can fight the Muslims and the Chinese).

[nana4g]

I am growing weary. I think this group is nutty. I just do not know what has happened to people in this country anymore. No contraception, no family planning, no prevention of teen pregnancies, no sex education, and no abortions. No SCHIPS and no health care reform either. Just throw us all out there like animals.

[zanzig]

Most of those can be put down to poor education or rather the hijacking of the education systems by religion. The fact is religion used the Republican Party to achieve this aim, and naturally now dominate the brainwashed right wing tools.

[FlamingLibrul]

The most extreme elements of the "pro-life" movement aren't as concerned with saving all the little babies, as they are in punishing women for having sex. It's about control- control of a woman's body, and the ability to invade what should be the most private of issues. In their theocratic-utopia, the only way unmarried women should prevent pregnancies is by ceasing their "immoral" behaviors.

It's sad that a minority of zealots Dem or Repub, have been allowed to restrict a woman's right to choose. Just because abortion is legal, doesn't mean dozens of laws haven't been passed by "State's rights" rethugs, making the waiting periods and restrictions all but nine months long. This is the 21st century. What a pity we still have these elements making decisions for millions of others.

[HPdevotee]

Agreed.

This is why the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA) is so important. Pro-choicers need to keep pressure on the President to push this piece of legislation and then sign it as he promised he would do on the campaign trial.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_of_Choice_Act

[VinceTeeter]

There is no PRO-LIFE, only PRO-HATE. Especially hatred of women. Remember, anti-abortion laws, when passed, will only affect poor women. Rich Women will always be able to get an abortion, even if they have to tour the wine district in the south of France on the same trip.

[FreelanceMinion]

I married into a conservative Catholic family and sometimes they can sound reasonable in their opinion that life is sacred and all, but eventually they really show themselves to be obsessed with ANY form of birth control other than refusing to have sex. The whole pro-life movement is controlled by this anti-birth control fringe who see a condomn as equivalent to infanticide, and they'll protest it is not true then write articles how pharmacists shouldn't sell them.

[overcat]

It's always been an open "secret" that within the ranks of the anti abortion crowd are a substantial number of people who are vehemently anti contraception as well, and use the anti abortion issue as a stepping stone to achieve their ultimate goal, which is to outlaw all rational family planning measures.

While I firmly disagree with the anti abortion stance, I do believe that there are sincere individuals in that movement who are, though wrong in my opinion, worthy of engaging on issues of philosophical difference. The anti contraception folks within their ranks, however, are in most instances intellectually dishonest, never really forthright about their true agenda, and unworthy of consideration or participation in any serious public discourse.