But fact is, even when we have a candidate with a stated pro-life position pre-election (i.e. Reagan, Bush 1, and Bush 2), they tend not to make a major issue of it once elected.

Again, I agree with you. It’s not an issue I vote (based on) for exactly the reason you state. The problem I have is with lumping the issue of abortion in with, say, two consenting adults engaging in something social conservatives would consider “perverse”.

As far as SoCons go, I’m with you when I think they overplay their hand with regard to personal sexual choices. The vast majority of what they attempt to delve into is truly none of their business and I resent them for delving into it in the first place. But abortion is a very different issue and to place it into the same category as things like gay marriage does thinking conservatives of all stripes a serious disservice.

Looking at the bigger picture though, it’s sad to me to see the only group that can reverse some of the damage Obama is doing (and will do) to this country bogged down in internal squabbles. That was the real point of my original comment. Conservatism was once thought of as a three-legged stool: fiscal, social and defense. We need all three in the proper balance. Unfortunately, two of the three now seem hell-bent on destroying each other rather than the left.