The final draft of the new Democratic Party platform calls for repealing the Hyde Amendment and Helms Amendment, a move that would allow tax dollars to fund abortions both domestically and abroad. This is the most extreme stance on abortion that a major party has ever endorsed.
In a press release published on Saturday, the Democratic Platform Committee released a list of key progressive policies that will be voted on at the Democratic National Convention. The committee boasted that the platform “goes further than previous Democratic platforms on women’s reproductive rights,” supporting the repeal of “harmful restrictions that obstruct women’s access to healthcare across the world.”
These restrictions include the Hyde Amendment, which bars taxpayer dollars from being used for abortion, and the Helms Amendment, which bars foreign assistance funds from being used to provide abortion as a method of family planning.
Pro-life advocates have harshly criticized the new platform. Kristen Day, executive director of Democrats for Life, warned that the measure “will usher in an era of unsafe abortion paid for with taxpayer funds during all nine months.” Political commenter Ben Shapiro echoed this sentiment, summarizing the platform as “abortion for everybody on earth, and you pay.”
Many on the left have praised the platform, however. Senior policy adviser Maya Harris issued a statement on behalf of Clinton's campaign voicing support for the measure, quoting Congressman Elijah Cummings in saying, “Our platform does not merely reflect common ground—it seeks higher ground.”
“For the first time, the Democratic Party platform explicitly calls for repealing the Hyde Amendment, which restricts access to women’s reproductive rights, particularly low-income women and women of color,” Harris said.
The platform will be presented for ratification this July at the Democratic National Convention.
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