Casey Backtracking on Abortion

Dem Bob Casey is trying to win Sen. Rick Santorum's seat in Pennsylvania, and supposedly one of Casey's strong suits was that he was pro-life, just like Santorum. That was supposed to take that issue off the table, and created some conflicts for most Dems who are ardently pro-abortion.

Casey is seeing the race tightening up, and it looks like he's backtracking a bit on the pro-life stance to keep from alienating his fellow Dems:

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Democrat Bob Casey said Thursday that abortion would not be his top priority if he's elected to the U.S. Senate, but that he instead would focus on health care and job creation.

Still, Casey said he might support bills that further restrict a woman's access to an abortion.

"It doesn't mean that I'm not going to be true to my principles on important issues, but I think on the question of abortion, what I want to see more of is an emphasis on what brings people together rather than what tears people apart," he said.

It sounds to me that Casey is trying to shore up what should be his base, which means he's concerned about the direction the polls are going and is fearful that some Dems will figure they might as well stay with seniority rather than a rookie senator if there's not much difference in their political views.