American actress Patricia Heaton, 61, best known for starring in the popular sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond, has condemned the Democratic Party’s "barbaric platform" on abortion.

Posting on Twitter, Patricia Heaton has complained about pro-life Democrats who still wonder whether they are welcome in the Democratic Party: "I don’t understand why pro-life people want to know if they are ‘welcome’ to join the democrat party [sic]. Why would any civilized person want to support a barbaric platform that champions abortion for any reason through all nine months funded by taxpayers?"

The prominent actress was apparently responding to pro-life Democrats who feel increasingly excluded by the party’s extreme stance on abortion.

Michael Robinson, SPUC Director of Communications said: "Ms Heaton’s pro-life comments come as the Democratic Party grows increasingly radical on the issue of abortion, recently shifting toward support for unlimited taxpayer funded abortions at any point during pregnancy - and perhaps even after birth. Two leading Democrat presidential candidates, Bernie Sanders and Pete Buttigieg, have even refused to welcome pro-life Democrats into the party".

Abortion and the contest for the Democratic nomination

Last week, Pete Buttigieg, currently running for the Democratic nomination to face President Trump in the 2020 United States presidential election, would not say if pro-life Democratic voters were still welcome in the party. At a town hall event hosted by Fox News, Kristin Day, a self-described "proud pro-life Democrat", had asked for clarification:

"So, do you want the support of pro-life Democrats, pro-life Democratic voters? There are about 21 million of us, and if so, would you support more moderate platform language in the Democratic Party to ensure that the party of diversity and inclusion really does include everybody?"

Buttigieg did not answer the question directly, and instead responded that he was "pro-choice and I believe that a woman ought to be able to make that decision", and "that if we can’t agree on where to draw the line, the next best thing we can do is agree on who should draw the line and in my view it’s the woman who’s faced with that decision in her own life".

Day later said that she was not satisfied with Buttigieg’s response.

Meanwhile, Bernie Sanders, a serious contender for the nomination, having just won the New Hampshire presidential primary, was also asked whether there was "such a thing as a pro-life Democrat in your vision for the party". Speaking at the "Our Rights, Our Courts" forum, hosted by the Demand Justice Initiative, the Center for Reproductive Rights and NARAL Pro-Choice America, Sanders replied:

"I think being pro-choice is an absolutely essential part of being a Democrat".

Heaton pushes back

Heaton, currently starring in the television series Carol’s Second Act, is one of the few celebrities pushing back against pro-abortion activists, advocates and parties.

Mr Robinson continued: "It is remarkable to see a Hollywood celebrity stand up for the unborn and in solidarity with the pro-life movement against barbaric abortion regimes".

Her remarks are very different to those of the actress Michelle Williams, who announced at the Golden Globes this year that she would not have her current acting success "without employing a woman's right to choose", as reported by SPUC.

It appears that Heaton has now entirely disowned the Democratic Party, explaining in another Tweet that she "was raised a Democrat - protested [the] Vietnam war, supported migrant farm workers etc". However, "the minute democrats targeted the most vulnerable and voiceless among us, I was out".