Abortion

In last week's Weekly Report, we wrote that Sixth Congressional District DFL candidate Elwyn Tinklenberg is pro-life, which is what his campaign told us. We quickly heard from Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life executive director Scott Fischbach, who said, "You can call yourself whatever you want. We'll make sure voters know in detail where he stands."

To Fischbach, the Tinklenberg campaign's claim that their guy is pro-life is misleading because Tinklenberg won't restore protection of the unborn by addressing Roe v. Wade.

"Tinklenberg put out rhetoric he knows will play in the district, without committing to life," Fischbach said. Fischbach concedes that Tinklenberg might understand abortion isn't good; however, that's not enough to earn a pro-life label in his book. MCCL's mission is to "restore protection for unborn children and their mothers," and to Fischbach, that requires a commitment to support work that will overturn Roe v. Wade, something Tinklenberg is on record as opposing.

Tinklenberg disagreed with Fischbach's definition of pro-life, describing this limited definition of pro-life as a "punitive, legalistic approach," that has resulted in little progress for children and pregnant women. He considers himself pro-life, and said it is his goal to reduce the number of abortions in the country.

"It is not my mission to eliminate the protection provided in Roe, or criminalize the relationship between a woman and her doctor," Tinklenberg said. To him, there is more to being pro-life than overturning Roe v. Wade. A broader definition is more productive, he said, pointing out that part of protecting the unborn is providing assurance of economic security in the areas of housing, health care and employment, as well as providing quality education on pregnancy prevention.

Publisher's Note: The 35th anniversary of Roe v. Wade got Pam Steinle in our office thinking and reflecting on the current state of the law and how she had to apply that in a classroom. Pretty provocative stuff. We're lucky to have Pam around until next August, when she'll have to choose between one of several fine Minnesota law schools (which have offered her full-ride scholarships). Thoughts about injecting stories like Pam's into PIM should be sent to sarah@politicsinminnesota.com.

Confessions Of A Sex Ed Teacher

By Pam Steinle

I was 25, I was an eighth grade sex education teacher, and I liked it.

I liked it for several reasons. First, I realize that it is somewhat of a gift to be able to teach classroom sex education without blushing, giggling or mumbling. My friends were appalled that I could talk to 25 eighth graders about sexual intercourse - my dear, that is nothing compared to explaining, without using slang, what anal sex is and how it puts you at risk for sexually transmitted infections (click here for the answer).

Second, I understood the importance of my job. Sad as it may be, I was the first and only adult who talked to some of these students about sex. The rest of their information came from the movies (we can all agree that the quality of sex in movies is the exception, not the norm), from their video games (click here to read the perspective of one speaker at the 2006 Sex in Video Games Conference - and FYI, she's for sex in video games, click here for more on the recent controversy surrounding the video game "Mass Effect.") from their peers (urban legends abound: did you know you can't get pregnant if you "do it" standing up?), and from the Internet (there are some informational sites, like Go Ask Alice, but probably more porn - and no, I didn't forget the link to that one).

Third, I am anti-abortion, and I believed that as a sex education teacher I could help reduce the number of abortions. This was my thought process: in order to reduce abortions, I need to reduce unwanted pregnancies. To reduce unwanted pregnancies, I need students to understand what behaviors might result in pregnancy. Those of you who passed your sex education class know that unprotected sex among healthy people eventually results in babies. Those of you who have had condoms break or pills fail know that protected sex among healthy people also carries a risk of having babies.

It would be great if all students said they would wait until they were married to procreate, but as it is many will not. I believed my job was to give them the facts about pregnancy, allow them to decide (with emphasis on considering their values, their parents' opinions, etc.) how much risk they were willing to take on, and then help them manage that risk. Some students decide to wait for moral reasons; some decide to wait until they are in a long-term relationship; some decide they want to start next week but will use birth control (sexually transmitted infections are also discussed as a risk).

Imagine my despair, when I discovered that abortion is not to be discussed in the classroom.

Abortion has been the litmus test issue that has defined both parties since Roe v. Wade was decided in 1973.

Rudy Giuliani's ascendancy as the frontrunner candidate to be the GOP's presidential nominee has engendered profound and wide-raging discussions among conservatives. On abortion, Guiliani is simplistically slugged, "pro choice." But not so fast. Consider this column by Michael Medved (the conservative talk radio host who is decidedly a social conservative):

"Among the major candidates, only Giuliani stands in the middle: Identifying a position that is, in fact, simultaneously anti-abortion and pro-choice. He backs policies designed to discourage or even sharply limit abortion, and he opposes the use of public money for abortions, while leaving final decisions to women and their doctors in most circumstances.

Polling data show that strong majorities of Americans share Giuliani's mixed position. They want to restrict abortion, but they don't want to outlaw it."

Could be that, regardless of whether or not Giuliani wins the GOP endorsement, his biggest contribution to our nation's political landscape could be blurring the lines between what it means to be "pro choice" and "pro life."

For this fiscal conservative / social moderate (who shares Guilani's views on abortion), that's an exciting prospect.