Hillary Clinton's campaign website published an article Tuesday that listed five "disturbing things" the Republican Party "just voted" into their platform. The piece asserted these policies were a step backward for society.
"The Republican National Convention is underway in Cleveland," wrote Kat Kane, Senior Writer and Creative Strategist at Hillary for America. "And the party just approved a platform so backward and divisive, you’d think it was written by Donald Trump himself."
The five "new" points the website presents in the piece, however, are neither unconstitutional nor deviant from the GOP platform. They are listed here in bold.
1. Restricting women’s rights and health care
Kane writes that Republicans seek to appoint "Supreme Court justices who will undermine women’s constitutional rights." She cites the party's goal to overturn the Roe decision. This was a principle of the party in the last election.
"They didn't stop there," the article went on to say. "The GOP platform also calls for defunding Planned Parenthood, an organization that provides millions of Americans with critical health services like cancer screenings, well-woman exams, and, yes, safe and legal abortion."
The difference between the 2012 and the 2016 GOP abortion platforms lies in the mention of Planned Parenthood. This year the platform states:
We oppose the use of public funds to perform or promote abortion or to fund organizations, like Planned Parenthood, so long as they provide or refer for elective abortions or sell fetal body parts rather than provide healthcare.
The 2012 platform promoted the withdrawal of federal funding from all abortion providers, but did not mention Planned Parenthood in passing. Hillary Clinton's website fails to mention that the new statement only seeks to remove funding if the organization continues to abort and sell fetuses.
2. Allowing parents to force so-called “conversion therapy” on their LGBT children
Here is the statement which triggered Hillary for America's response:
We support the right of parents to determine the proper medical treatment and therapy for their minor children.
This statement is too broad to prevent "conversion therapy," but it does not specify that such a practice is safe or legal for LGBT children nor does it condone it. The GOP platform simply does not address this issue.
The 2016 Democratic Party Platform does not mention gay conversion therapy either. It vaguely addresses LGBT discrimination, and mentions school bullying and youth homelessness. Conversion therapy is currently legal in 45 states, but the Democratic platform does not explicitly mention any legal action against it.
3. Building Trump’s wall
Trump's wall is an effort to stop illegal immigration.
Illegal activities are not allowed by the government. It is in the government's best interests to take action to prevent illegal activities. The writer argues that this "cynical and divisive" plan won't fix the problem. However no alternatives are provided by Kane or the Democrats' platform. No evidence is presented by the writer to show how the wall won't be effective.
The Democrats' statement on immigration never uses the word "illegal." However, it finishes with a direct statement on Republican Presidential Nominee Donald Trump:
Finally, Democrats will not stand for the divisive and derogatory language of Donald Trump. His offensive comments about immigrants and other communities have no place in our society. This kind of rhetoric must be rejected.
Kane also writes:
Trump’s dehumanizing rhetoric also found its way into Republican lexicon: The GOP platform refers to undocumented immigrants as “illegal aliens.”
While the GOP's new definition does not follow current AP style, it is not a false claim. Immigrants who enter the country illegally, with none or incorrect documents are illegal aliens. "Alien" is a synonym for a foreign individual.
Calling this a result of "Trump's dehumanizing rhetoric," is misleading. The AP only recently banned the use of the terms "illegal" and "illegal alien." The news organization used to include "illegal immigrant." in its stylebook. The AP does not condone the use of the term "undocumented immigrants."
4. Denying marriage rights for LGBT couples
The GOP seeks to overturn the Supreme Court's decision on gay marriage. This would remove the national standard, but not restrict states' decisions on the issue. While this platform point may be countercultural now that gay marriage has been legalized, it has been a GOP principle for years.
The GOP's new platform advocates against judicial overreach, and asks that Congress, states, and voters be able to decide on this issue. It does not seek to directly deny marriage rights for LGBT couples.
5. Attacking “non-traditional” families
Kane writes that the new Republican platform seeks to attack families that aren't "traditional." The GOP does not mention how it will attack "non-traditional" family structures, and it provides evidence to support its claim that the government should promote the "traditional" family structure.
Here is the GOP's statement:
Children raised in a two-parent household tend to be physically and emotionally healthier, more likely to do well in school, less likely to use drugs and alcohol, engage in crime or become pregnant outside of marriage. We oppose policies and laws that create a financial incentive for or encourage cohabitation. Moreover, marriage remains the greatest antidote to child poverty. The 40 percent of children who now are born outside of marriage are five times more likely to live in poverty than youngsters born and raised by a mother and father in the home. Nearly three-quarters of the $450 billion government annually spends on welfare goes to single-parent households. This is what it takes for a governmental village to raise a child, and the village is doing a tragically poor job of it
"The Republican Party platform is alarming—and telling," writes Kane. "And it shows exactly what a Trump presidency would look like."
The party platform still supports unborn children rights, legal immigration, and traditional family structures. This is not a radical change.
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