Well this is a very surprising move by Republicans in Nevada. I never would have thought they would strip out their anti-abortion/pro-life stance in the party platform, ever. Not that this will in any way cause pro-choice Republicans to come out of the woodwork, but still it's nice to see:
The Nevada Republican party on Saturday voted to remove its opposition to gay marriage and its pro-life stance from the party platform, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. State party Chairman Michael McDonald told the Review-Journal that he was pleased with the outcome of the vote.
"I think it was about inclusion, not exclusion," he said about the platform. "This is where the party is going."
A party committee proposed a new party platform without a stance on the two social issues, after the Clark County, Nev. GOP voted to remove them earlier in April.
The old party platform in Nevada defined marriage as between a man and a woman and stated that the party was "pro-life," both of which were removed from the official platform. Nevada Republicans told the Review-Journal that they felt it was time for the party to step away from some social issues, especially after numerous court rulings striking down state bans on same-sex marriage.
Religious Conservatives are going to freak out over this move since the GOP has become a slave of the religious right so many years ago. James Dobson and his acolytes will call this decision by Nevada Republicans a betrayal of everything they hold dear.
I can't wait to see what happens if Las Vegas gets the 2016 Convention since the Christianists have already made their feelings known on the City of Sin:
Religious conservatives are urging the GOP to scratch Sin City off its list of potential locations for the 2016 Republican National Convention, the Dallas Morning News reports. According to the paper, advocates are concerned that Las Vegas' reputation as a gambling and prostitution haven will discourage conservatives from attending the event and that the city is a "trap waiting to ensnare" convention attendees.
The GOP is supposedly interested in reaching out to conservatives and evangelicals. Maybe that’s just a front, but if they really mean it this is not the way to do it," James Dobson, founder of Family Talk, a Christian radio show that broadcasts across the United States, told the paper. "Even though Vegas has tried to shore itself up and call itself family-friendly, it’s still a metaphor for decadence. There's still 64 pages of escort services in the Yellow Pages."
