“If we continue to allow Washington politicians to put us all in their pre-prescribed boxes on abortion, the vast majority will simply refrain from engaging, and the debate will continue to be controlled by the extremes.”
ANNAPOLIS, MD —Governor Larry Hogan today published a piece in The Washington Post on abortion and the state of politics. The piece is available here, and below:
The extremes should not control the abortion conversation.
The moment I entered the race to serve Maryland in the U.S. Senate, partisan politicians began launching a familiar playbook of scare tactics and false attacks on abortion. Our opponents are attempting to seize on legitimate fears of voters regarding extreme abortion policies for their own political gain.
This was predictable and entirely unsurprising. I’ve faced these attacks for a decade. It’s just how national politics operates these days. Scare tactics are easier than solutions.
We can do better. There are few issues that cry out more for understanding, compassion and a willingness to listen to the other side. If we continue to allow Washington politicians to put us all in their pre-prescribed boxes on abortion, the vast majority will simply refrain from engaging, and the debate will continue to be controlled by the extremes.
Most Marylanders and Americans don’t fit neatly into one box. I sure don’t. Even many of the most ardent pro-lifers support common-sense exceptions, and even many of the most passionate pro-choice advocates do not support abortion on demand up to the point of birth.
Marylanders know where I stand. As governor, I pledged I would never overturn Maryland law. We kept that promise, and I signed the Maryland Contraceptive Equity Act to provide expanded access to birth control and advanced a maternal and child health-care initiative, investing in greater access to prenatal care, postpartum care and child health visits.
In the Senate, I will not do anything to undo Maryland law, which already protects reproductive rights. And I would never support a national abortion ban.
I am, and will continue to be, the underdog in this race. Political operatives think these scare tactics will work. They believe we have become too polarized and too divided to recognize the real people that sit beyond the party labels. I disagree. Marylanders have proved time and again that we can think for ourselves. Our campaign is based on the belief that we can and must change this toxic cycle. We can change it if we bring our case directly and honestly to the people of Maryland and who are — like me — completely fed up with politics as usual.
We must allow real and honest conversations to take hold on even the most challenging issues of the day. That’s the only way we will take back our politics from the extremes. And only then can we begin to fix the broken politics of Washington. I am confident that Marylanders can again show the nation how we can build a better path forward.
