Democratic campaign committee supports Texas pro-life candidate despite party’s abortion stance

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), despite its overwhelming support for abortion, is forking out thousands of dollars in an ad partnership with Dan Sanchez, a pro-life Democrat running to represent Texas’ 34th Congressional District in a special election this month.

The $100,000 coordinated purchase from the DCCC was announced this weekend and ads began airing on Saturday, according to Patrick Svitek of the Texas Tribune.

During a May 31 forum featured on Facebook with Futuro RGV, Sanchez said he is a Catholic and made it clear that he is pro-life “across the board.”

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Asked whether his views on abortion had changed after a leaked Supreme Court draft opinion signaled that federal protections for abortion granted under Roe v. Wade could soon be overturned, Sanchez said, “My views haven’t changed since I was a little boy. I’m a Catholic. I was raised as a Catholic, and as a Catholic, you know I’m pro-life.”

“Pro-life across the board,” he added, noting that he is “against the death penalty.” Sanchez said the topic of abortion is very “difficult” because you have different “variations” of abortions.

“Although we respect women’s rights, we have to also respect the children’s rights,” he said. “We have children being born and then not being cared for. We need to make sure that if these children are born there’s proper child care, there’s healthcare, there’s what they need in order to help these new moms…”

Sanchez’s views on abortion are in direct contrast with that of the national party and prior support for abortion offered by the DCCC.

In an early May tweet, the official Twitter account for the DCCC linked to a New York Times article about support from Democrats for “abortion rights” and wrote, “Democrats are fighting to codify Roe v. Wade. Republicans are fighting to take it away.”

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Just last month, DCCC Chair Sean Patrick issued a joint statement with Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison, DSCC Chair Gary Peters, DGA Chair Roy Cooper, and others that called the current situation surrounding abortion access a “crisis.”

“The Republican attacks on abortion access, birth control and women’s health care have dramatically escalated the stakes of the 2022 election. At this moment of crisis, Democrats are standing shoulder to shoulder with millions of Americans in this fight. And in November, we must elect Democrats who will serve as the last lines of defense against the GOP’s assault on our established and fundamental freedoms,” they wrote. “These elections will now determine whether cruel new restrictions on abortion will be put in place: whether states will be allowed to criminalize abortion and ban it even in cases of rape or incest.”

“We want to make this very clear: Abortion is legal. It is your right,” they added. “And the Democratic Party will fight to ensure this fundamental freedom remains intact. For voters, the consequences of the election for the future of our country have never been higher.”

Sanchez is running to replace Rep. Filemon Vela, D-Texas, who represented the district for nearly ten years in Congress. Endorsed by Vela and Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, D-Texas, Sanchez is a graduate from St. Mary’s University and the University of Texas School of Law.

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The special election will take place on June 14, 2022, when Sanchez will face off against three other candidates, including Republican Mayra Flores, Democrat Rene Coronado, and Republican Juana Cantu-Cabrera.

Should Sanchez get elected, he would join Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, as the only other pro-life Democrat in the House.

Last September, the House passed the Women’s Health Protection Act and Cuellar was the only Democrat who voted against it in a sign that the pro-life Democratic caucus is on the verge of extinction on the federal level. As a life-long Catholic, Cuellar said he’s pro-life and won’t support “extreme” positions like late-term or partial birth abortion.

Fox News did not receive an immediate response from the DCCC.

Marisa Schultz contributed to this article.