The Democratic Party Platform is a 92-page document outlining their views and plans for running against the Republicans this fall. You can read the full document here.
Texas themes were featured throughout the program.
On Tuesday morning, the Texas delegation in Chicago heard several speeches at their daily breakfast. One topic stood out: abortion.
“Think about what is happening to women in our state. It is inexcusable and we must do something about it,” said Democratic Rep. Julie Johnson of Farmers Branch.
With a series of laws, Republican leaders have effectively banned abortions, with a few exceptions. In this year’s party platform, the Democratic Party wants to return the state to the standard of the Roe vs. Wade ruling that was in place a few years ago, which normally defines “fetal viability” between the 24th and 28th week of pregnancy. This is likely to be a high hurdle for the traditionally Christian-conservative state.
Texan Amanda Zurawski was one of the members of the group that drafted the platform. She had previously launched a high-profile legal battle against the state of Texas after she was denied an abortion despite having a high-risk pregnancy.
“We not only have a ban on abortion, but also criminal sanctions for doctors and healthcare professionals,” said TikTok creator and another member of the platform committee, Olivia Julianna.
On the immigration issue, Democrats have been moderate in the last election cycle, basing their goals on a bipartisan bill that was rejected in Congress earlier this year after opposition from former President Trump.
The Democratic platform calls for 1,500 additional border patrol agents and 4,300 additional asylum officers; emergency authority to deport people who have not crossed the border through a port of entry; increased penalties for human smugglers; and 250,000 additional immigrant visas for families and jobs over the next five years.
“Our platform is very common sense. We need immigrants to sustain this country. But we need to ensure that people come to this country in a fair and safe way. And that ensures the safety of our communities that already live here. And it also ensures the safety of immigrants who come to this country,” Julianna said.
Last month, Republicans rejected Democrats’ ideas at the Republican National Convention and approved a priority of former President Trump that called for the largest deportation drive in history. The party platform was revised in the form of Trump’s Republican Party “Make America Great Again,” which was more labor-focused and included softer language on same-sex marriage and abortion.
On the Democratic side, things were a little different. Their platform mentioned President Joe Biden more than two hundred times, most of which was written before he dropped out of the race in favor of his Vice President, Kamala Harris.
