Abortion and the Roy Moore scandal

One of the things that has struck me about the discussion of the Roy Moore scandals among self-identified conservative Christians is how their ideological position on abortion seems to trump their sense of disgust at even child molestation when it comes to voting choices.

John Archibald reports on a classmate of one of Moore's accusers who gives background information about Moore's reputation at the time he was hitting on high school girls, Schoolmate of Roy Moore accuser: He was 'creepy and icky' AL.com 11/16/2017. She seems to take the molestation accusations seriously, and she claims she also was molested as a child, though not by Moore:

"I was molested," she said. "It started when I was five years old and it went for several years. I have yet to confront this person. I've had several Christian counselors and psychiatrists and I didn't tell them until just this past year. It's been almost 50 years."

She can only imagine what it's like to see her abuser every day on TV.

"If I had to hear his voice -- whether it be on the radio or TV or see a picture of him and his name in print -- I would find the loudest and largest voice I could find to speak out," she said.

It has happened time and time again since the Roy Moore allegations began. An Arizona woman came forward after more than 60 years to talk about her abuser, and women across Alabama have done the same. Because it is a moment of change in the culture.

"It's not political," she said. "It's our lives."

But it puts her in a tough spot, because she doesn't support Doug Jones or his views on abortion.

So who is she going to vote for?

"I can't imagine voting for either one of them. I don't know. It's a horribly sad state.

"Literally."

Schoolmate of Leigh Corfman talks about avoiding Roy Moore in the mall as a teenager AL.com YouTube 11/16/2017:

Abortion was consciously used as symbolic issue by the Christian Right as it emerged in its present form in the late 1970s. Abortion was not a high priority issue for most conservative Christians until then. Conservative churches generally didn't make much ruckus about the Roe v. Wade decision when it was handed down in 1973. Not that it was an invisible issue. Legalizing abortion was a priority for the women's movement. And the Nixon-Agnew campaign in 1972 used opposition to abortion as one of several signifiers that they were opposed to hippies and lefties.

But it has now become a issue which signifies a whole wide range of morally-charged loyalties for Republicans.

This is especially notable because I've gotten to the point where it's difficult for me to believe that virtually any Republicans actually cares about the issue in the way they claim. I'll consider changing my mind when I see a majority of Republicans in Congress vote against a war on the explicit grounds that it would kill innocent "unborn babies." As all our wars do.

Have you every heard a single Republican politician or voter express concern about the "unborn babies" killed in the wars they cheer on? Me neither.

But even for someone like this woman who describes herself as a victim of childhood sexual molestation and even defends Moore's accusers against the excuse that they didn't "come forward" for 40 years, an excuse which she clearly thinks is ridiculous, cites "abortion" as her reason for (apparently) still considering supporting someone like Moore. She does mention it in the broader context of identifying herself politically as part of the "Christian conservative" tribe.

She ever states, "I am proud to say I voted for Donald Trump. Despite everything. I think it's what our country needed."