Reducing Teen Pregnancies and Abortions

by Janice Shaw Crouse

The first step in reducing teen pregnancy and abortion is to know the facts. Actually, we know what works. Child Trends and the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy published their own data and the corroborating findings of a vast body of scientific research which found that the recipe for delaying sexual activity is parental involvement, good friends, strong faith and participation in church activities. The bottom line, they said, is that parents and friends have tremendous influence on their children, regardless of socio-demographic or economic background and characteristics.

Obviously, many of the nation’s adolescents don’t have those positive influences in their lives; researchers from the left and the right acknowledge the problems associated with single parent families, father absence, declining church attendance, and lack of community networks.

Liberal or Conservative?: The use of Political labels to smear candidates

It is now the fashionable order of the day to use the political labels such as liberal or conservative as a smear for a person inside your group that thinks differently on major issues. For example, a Republican being branded liberal is a bad thing inside the Republican group, while a Democrat being seen as conservative is equally bad inside the Democratic camp.  This negative labeling brings up the question what are conservative and liberal other than labels we use to describe people either pejoratively or positively depending on who is using the label to describe an action that was taken.

 

I beleive that there are four categories of individuals inside both major parties: conservatives, liberals, moderates, and neoconservatives. This labeling gets more complicated because different actions can earn different labels for the same person. What is the meaning of each of these labels?

 

• Conservatives are those who adhere to a philosophy of conservatism which believes in tradition, stability, and established institutions. Core political political positions include lower taxes, limited government, limited regulation on business and investment, and a strong national defense.
• Liberals are those who adhere to a philosophy of liberalism which belives in progress and essential goodness of the human race. Core political positions include autonomy of the individual as well as protection of civi rights and civil liberties.
• Moderates are those that profess non extreme positions on the core issues of both liberals and conservatives.
• Neoconservatives are people who promotes the assertive promotion of democracy and the intervention of the United States in world affairs by military means.

(Definitions from Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary.)

 

These thoughts are coming out of an article that is in The State newspaper this morning. Political columnist James Rosen chronicles Senator Lindsey Graham’s voting record in his article Graham : Liberal label inaccurate. The article chronicles the difference in treat he recieves from the media and political colleagues and that he recieves from the people, particularly of the upstate region he calls home.  Currently he gets defined by the relatively few times he crosses a party line to solve a problem. The actions looming largest in the minds of the voters are the following:

 

Immigration: Senator Graham supported a bipartisan compromise that included border enforcement and a set of rules that most liberals disagreed with to legalize the illegals that had been here for a certain amount of time. This seemed fair enough, but many just wanted them all sent back.

 

Torture: He questioned the administration’s policy on the definition of torture. This angered “conservatives” who thought that he should go along with the administration on this point. He questioned this policy based n his experience as a military lawyer. The military is, by nature, a conservative institution.

 

Hillary Clinton: Sen. Graham praised Hillary Clinton which recieved criticism from conservatives.

 

Gang of 14: Counted correctly as one of his accomplishments, but nonethe less highly criticized by fellow conservatives. He brokered the deal to preserve the instittution of the United States Senate.

 

Looking at each of these actions to measure his conservatism or liberalism is foolish becasue one has to measure his entire record. It is also not neccessarily conservative or liberal to walk in lockstep (which he hasn’t done) behind a president. Looking at each of these actions puts him n the moderate-conservative camp. I am not counting the praise of Hillary Clinton in the caluculation because I think that one can have no political agenda when praising a colleague.

 

I see the immigration compromise as moderate becasue it allowed people to recieve special visas after returnining to their country of origin and meeting certain requirements.

 

Sen. Graham’s response to the torture is conservative because it follows established precedent and laws. It also follows the experience of the military, which he loves and is a very conservative institution. In his response he also wanted to protect any member of our armed forces that may be held captive.

 

The Gang of 14 compromise could also be seen in a conservative light as preserving the institution of the United States Senate and allowing the confirmation of several formerly controversial nominees, as well as, Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justice Samuel Alito.

 

Calling Sen Graham a liberal is using the term as a pejorative in order to gain political advantage and is espescially disingenuous when one examines his entire record and observes the hard right camapign he is running just to maintian his Senate seat.

 

We need to properly use the labels to identify people instead of as pejorative. I do not fell that either position of seeking progress or maitaining tradition is wrong. In fact I beleive that this country is about seeking progress within the existing traditions and institutions of the nation.

The Racist Undercurrent of the Immigration Debate

In ‘There’s racism in this debate’ Ed Morales outlines numerous examples of racism or bigotry in the recent debate on immigration.

-Rush Limbaugh doctored a photo of Sen. Lindsey Graham to show him wearing a sombrero.

-Pat Buchanan says on Meet the Press that “many” immigrants are “child molesters, rapists, and robbers.”

Sen. Graham co-sponsors legislation banning item made with “sweatshop labor”

Sen. Graham is co-sponsoring legislation with 5 of his colleagues that would ban imports from factories that utilize sweatshop labor. He says of his support for the bill “If you’re a business person engaged in exploiting people to get a better market share, I hope you get fined, I hope you get sued. That’s not the way to build up an economy. That’s not the way to have global trade.”The legislation, S. 367 (pdf) is Sponsored by Byron Dorgan a Democrat from North Dakota would impose a $10,000 fine on any company caught importing goods made in a sweatshop.
(Source)

Byron Dorgan: Press Release
Bill Summary & Status

The Graham Principle: American Values and the Rule of Law

We have been fighting a battle with terrorists since 9/11/2001 and Sen. Graham has been consistent in his crusade to have us fight the war according to the principles that have made this country great: justice and the rule of law. These values are the most important, especially in a time of war. Lindsey is not only a Senator leading the charge for legal military tribunals but is appearantly fighting for the interests of the Judge Advocate General Corps and the military that has allowed him to earn his degrees and support his sister so she could get her college degree.

He was indignant after the Abu Ghraib scandal broke in the media. He was not about to let us look like our enemy because we would lose the moral highground. He even told Attorney General Alberto Gonzales during a hearing that the way we fight the war on terror is about us and not them. He supported the Detainee Treatment Act which banned “cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment” of detainees. He also said that we needed to follow the rule of law in treatment of the terror suspects.

Currently he is fighting for congress to approve a bill that would create military commissions that would be modeled on the Uniform Code of Military Justice. This is in the face of criticism from conservative commentators that he is the leader in the “terrorist rights” mmovement. No, he is just trying to put the rule of law in its proper place with regard to this battle.

Another example of his commitment to the rule of law and proper treatement of detainees is blocking the nomination of William James Haynes III for the 4th Circuit of Appeals. His opposition to the nominee is based on sound law, timeless values, and immutable principles. We do not torture, the Defense Department General Counsel should protect the interests of the Defense Department, and above all else the Judge Advocates should have an imput into detention and trial policy because they are the experts and not the political appointees. Most of the pertinent question comes from the JAG memos,a working group report that voiced concerns over the policies being promulgated by the Justice Department and supported by the Defense Department.

He is also placing language in a defense authorization bill that would grant the top Judge Advocate in each branch of the service a thid star and therefore place them on equal footing with some of the executive civillian employees. He has also written a bill that woul place the civilian contractors working with the military in the military chain of comand. These initiatives are both in resistance to the administration.

He has shown his willingness to protect our military members, follow the rule of law, and live by American values and this is what makes him special.

Modeled After Sen. Graham

Two years ago when I traveled for the campaign of John Edwards I never dreamed I would be writing about modeling myself after Lindsey Graham because at the time I didn’t know who he was and hadn’t cared much to watch C-SPAN. I began watching C-SPAN during the campaign hoping to see John Edwards give the blockbuster speech on the Senate floor that would set me swooning. However, this never happened because John Edwards was out campaigning.

Discovery of Sen. Graham
One day while listening to the Senate proceedings I heard a refreshingly eager voice. He was talking about trade and jobs. It was enough to make me wonder about the speaker. I turned around and watched as the gentleman spoke and I saw that it was Lindsey Graham. I had just returned from campaigning in Milwaukee at this time. I couldn’t believe that in the middle of a campaign I was getting interested in someone else; on the other side no less. Sen. Graham had captured my attention and I did research to find out more about his life, career, and positions. The more I looked into it the more I admired him and decided that he was the person upon which I wanted to model myself.

Disagreement, Defense, and Support
I disagree with him sometimes and other times I wonder what he is thinking, but this never makes me question his status as my role model.

We tend to question those items we disagree with more than that with which we agree. However, I chose to adopt his idea of compromising and finding a middle ground in order to get something done. The largest example of this is the judicial compromise, which he took flak for, but I found it easy to defend.

I know I have moved slightly left (populist-leaning conservative to populist conservative) over the last two years and appearantly Sen. Graham has also, at least on immigration. He has a populist streak that causes his independent, some would say maverick, actions. I share this streak and the desire to help people. I share the willingness to challenge orthodoxy when necessary, like in supporting a payroll tax cap increase to pay for the transition cost of the Social Security reform.

I do not agree with his support of the Marriage Protection Amendment for Constitutional reasons, but I honor his wish to support it. I will also defend his vote for the nuclear option should it become necessary. I hope this option never returns to the debate and never sees the light of day again.

Conclusion
I choose to model myself after Sen. Graham because of his willingness to compromise and stand for principles, as well as his life being a model of the American Dream.

• Response to Lindsey Graham is Starting to Really Disappoint Me, by Mike Reino at SC6

Sen. Lindsey Graham: Independent and Conscientious

The day starts early, 7 or 8 with him in his office in the Russell Senate Office Building near Constitution Ave and C Street. He sits at a finely polished cherry wood desk in a high-backed soft black swivel chair working diligently on constituent requests and legislative priorities. There is a buzzer in this office that lets him know when a vote takes place on the floor of the United States Senate, “the world’s most deliberative body.” Today he works on preparations for the Confirmation hearings on Judge Alberto Gonzales to Attorney General of the United States. He plans to grill Judge Gonzales on things like the Geneva Convention, which as an Air Force Judge Advocate he knows well. Also on his desk this day is Social Security reform an issue that he took on as a member of the House and won the senate seat on this issue.

Now, he confidently strides to the Dirksen Senate Office Building for the hearing, smiling and extolling his pleasant, good natured character. Of course the hearing he is attending is a Confirmation hearing on “Executive Nominations”, specifically that of Alberto Gonzales. Graham ignited an exchange with Judge Gonzales and a confrontation with conservative talk show host Sean Hannity

Grilling Gonzales
Sen. Graham: And to those who think that the Geneva Convention is a nicety or that taking torture off the table is naive and a sign of weakness, my answer to them is the following, that Secretary Powell has been in combat, and I think that you weaken yourself as a nation when you play cute and become more like your enemy instead of like who you want to be. So I am publicly going to say that the lawyers in the Secretary of State’s Office, while I may disagree with them, and while I may disagree with Secretary Powell, were advocating the best sense of who we are as a people. Now having said that, the Department of Justice memo that we are all talking about now, in my opinion, Judge Gonzales, is not a little bit wrong, but entirely wrong in its focus because it excluded another body of law called the Uniform Code of Military Justice.

And, Mr. Chairman, I have asked since October for memos from the working group by judge advocate general representatives that commented on this Department of Justice policy, and I have yet to get those memos. I have yet read those memos. They’re classified for some bizarre reason. But generally speaking those memos talk about that if you go down the road suggested, you’re making a U-turn as a nation, that you’re going to lose the moral high ground.

Judge Gonzales: I would respectfully disagree with your statement that we’re becoming more like our enemy.

Sen. Graham: Can I suggest to you that I didn’t say that we are like our enemy; that the worst thing we did, when you compare it to Saddam Hussein, was a good day there. But we are not like who we want to be and who we have been. And that’s the point I am trying to make when you start trying to look a torture statutes and you look at ways around the spirit of the law, than you’re losing the moral high ground.

The Confrontation
“That’s too damn bad!” Graham emphatically stated on the Sean Hannity radio show later in the day. Mr. Hannity had touched a nerve by criticizing Sen. Graham’s exchange with Judge Gonzales regarding the Geneva Convention. He is a military appellate judge and has a great respect for the law. “They had an honest disagreement,” according to Mr. Grisham the show’s producer, however, this “honest disagreement” caused at least one listener to e-mail Sen. Graham to register disappointment. “I listened to your remarks today & on the Sean Hannity radio program today. I must tell you that I am very disappointed in your comments & attitude today. Not only were you quite cavalier in your remarks regarding this issue (“That’s too damn bad!”) on Sean’s show.” This respondent was from Sacramento, CA.

Bipartisan Working Group
“What they’re worried about is that they’d embrace a particular plan and the other side will demagogue the hell out of it.” This prophetic statement Lindsey Graham made came true, even though the President has yet to endorse a plan.

However he feels there needs to be sacrifice for the idea to work and he is leading the way. “Why should I expect someone in this job to be braver than I want to be?” he asked in an interview. “I’m asking both parties to sacrifice their ideology for the common good.” Graham is working with a small group of Republicans and Democrats to find a bipartisan solution to the problem. “He’s playing an important role. He seems to have the guts to make a proposal,” according to Senate colleague Joe Lieberman, a Democrat.

Independent and Rambunctious
An independent, and some would say rambunctious streak showed itself early, as Graham worked to overthrow Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich in 1997. In the end Gingrich survived the coup but not before Graham had the last say: “I can’t intimidating.” This caused a laugh around the room and even Gingrich managed a smile. This was not the first time Graham had drawn attention too his small stature. In response to being asked to comment on the late Strom Thurmond: “I’m 5-foot-7 and about 150 pounds. I don’t think you’ll see me rassling anybody to the floor. But people in South Carolina do like their Senators to go up there and shake it up a bit.” However, the small statured Graham lettered in wrestling when in high school.