Are Liberals Beginning to Win the Culture War?

By Dan Gilgoff, God & Country

ABC's Rick Klein has a nice piece up about all the recent culture war action that's been totally overshadowed in the national conversation by the hydra-headed recession. But I think his assertion that recent months have seen "victories for social liberals—and setbacks for social conservatives—on a scale not seen in decades" takes his thesis too far.

Here are the nut graphs of Klein's piece:

A flurry of state-level activity is dramatically expanding gay marriage in the United States. A court ruling in Iowa and a legislative vote in Vermont made them the third and fourth states to legalize same-sex marriage, and moves are under way for states including New York, Connecticut and New Hampshire to join them soon.

Add to that Obama administration executive orders on stem-cell research and abortion rights, and the last few months have brought victories for social liberals — and setbacks for social conservatives — on a scale not seen in decades.

A reality check is in order.

On abortion, besides the president's overturning the Mexico City policy—which prevented funds from going to family planning groups that endorse or provide abortion—what other victories can pro-abortion rights activists point to? Obama's Mexico City reversal simply turns the clock back to the Clinton policies.

What about the expectation that Obama will rescind so-called conscience protections for healthcare workers? That just turns the clock back to the Bush administration. Those protections, which proponents say shield abortion foes from having to endorse or help provide abortions or from having to participate in other controversial procedures, only took effect once Obama took office.

Regarding embryonic stem cell research, the National Institutes of Health under President Obama disappointed a lot of research proponents by limiting federal funds to excess embryos created by in vitro fertilization clinics. Many scientists and patient activists wanted federal money for therapeutic cloning or for creating embryos for the express purpose of research, but Obama's NIH has outlawed money for those purposes. For social liberals, this was only a partial victory. For social conservatives, it was only a partial defeat.

And while it is true that Vermont and Iowa have legalized same-sex marriage, the big headline from recent years is the number of states that have constitutionally barred gay couples from marrying—and, in most cases, from receiving any legal recognition for their unions. Twenty-nine states have taken such action. Four states, by comparison, have legalized gay marriage.

Sure, liberals have racked up a few recent victories in the culture war. But the tide ain't turning in a haven't-seen-this-in-decades kind of way.

• Read more by Dan Gilgoff.
• Read more about abortion.