Never known for their humility, Democrats frequently brag about their being the "inclusive "American political party. It is true that if the Democrats in Denver took a class picture, there would be more people of different racial, ethnic and national origin who look different from each other than there would be in a similar Republican photo op in St. Paul. But the truth is that Democrats at the convention "look" a lot more diverse than they think diverse.

Consider the first five announced speakers — not named Bush or Cheney — who will speak to the 2008 Republican national convention. Four of them — California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge — are pro-choice on the issue of abortion. Alone, among the five, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee agrees with the overwhelming majority of GOP delegates and the party's platform in his opposition to legal abortion.

And what about those proudly "diverse" Democrats? First-term Pennsylvania senator and Barack Obama backer Bob Casey will be the first pro-life Democrat in recent history to be given a prime speaking slot at a party convention. You tell me: Which of the two parties is more open and welcoming to being exposed to differing voices on abortion?

There is a certain measure of vindication in Casey's Denver speech. Those of us who were there still remember Madison Square Garden in the summer of 1992 and the Democratic convention that nominated Bill Clinton for the first time.

The Democratic governor of Pennsylvania, that year and from 1986 to 1994, was the late Bob Casey, the father of the current senator. And what a Democrat he was! He appointed the first African-American woman to any American state supreme court. His cabinet included more women than that of any other governor. He was the undisputed champion in providing school-based childcare for infants and preschoolers — and poor children. This meant that teenage parents could complete their education.

T. Barry Brazelton, the nationally esteemed pediatrician, called Casey's programs that provided health insurance for all children in the state whose families were too poor to pay for it "a model for the rest of the country."

There was one U.S. governor in the recession of the early '90s who steadfastly refused to cut welfare payments to the least and the lost among us. That governor was Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, who increased state spending on AIDS from $665,000 to $21 million.

With such an admirable Democratic record, Gov. Bob Casey could have reasonably expected an invitation to tell his story to the 1992 convention. But not only was Casey not invited to speak, he and his Pennsylvania delegation were banished to the most remote location in Madison Square Garden. You see, Governor Casey was strongly pro-life, and no pro-life voices were to be heard.

In fact, to drive that last point home, while the Democratic governor of Pennsylvania was not allowed to speak, Kathy Taylor, a Republican Pennsylvania state representative who had opposed and voted against Casey's progressive tax reform but who was strongly pro-choice, was given a coveted speaking assignment from the convention podium.

Whether motivated by a new broadmindedness or naked self-interest, Democratic leaders in the Senate and the House have backed winning pro-life House nominees already this year in special elections in Louisiana and Mississippi. In 2006, New York Sen. Charles Schumer, the Democrats' Senate campaign chief, boldly interfered in a Senate primary to back a pro-life candidate who was nominated and who defeated the Republican incumbent that November. The state was Pennsylvania, and the winning Democrat of course was Bob Casey. Just maybe, there is some hope for the Democrats.

To find out more about Mark Shields and read his past columns, visit the Creators Syndicate web page at www.creators.com.

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COPYRIGHT 2008 MARK SHIELDS