Tom Perez thinks of himself as a progressive champion and says he’s committed to “fighting for the little guy.” But there’s a weight threshold to his heroics. The Democratic National Committee chair won’t fight for anyone much smaller than an eight-pound unborn baby.
To guard against confusion, Perez tweeted on Friday that he remains “committed—as I have been my entire life—to ensuring access to the full range of reproductive health services including abortion.” That statement was intentionally heavy-handed and that was the point.
For daring to suggest that pro-life liberals could rally to the Democrat banner last week, Perez has been publicly flogged by the abortion lobby. His tweets were meant to publicly atone for his sin of thinking that reasonable people could disagree on the issue.
Normally party brass wouldn’t be subjected to this sort of self-flagellation. For decades, Democrats have proudly advertised as the pro-abortion party. But last week Perez got himself into trouble when he followed the lead of Sen. Bernie Sanders and endorsed a self-described pro-life Democrat running for mayor of Omaha.
Surveying that rural landscape, Perez seemed to accept the political reality. What works “in the People’s Republic of Takoma Park,” he explained to the Washington Post, wouldn’t work in bright red Nebraska. “If you demand fealty on every single issue,” Perez said, “then it’s a challenge.” At least that’s what he was saying before he went to bed on Thursday.
When morning came Friday, it was clear Perez had endured a long night. The leader of the second largest political party had obviously been worked over operatives. And after that rough handling, Perez’s tone was noticeably different. Now the leader of the Democrat party is running around pledging allegiance to abortion.
To avoid any additional unpleasant treatment from NARAL or Planned Parenthood, Perez has made clear that when he says “little guy” he doesn’t mean that little.
Philip Wegmann is a commentary writer for the Washington Examiner.
