Pro-Life movement under attack

Liberals want you to forget about their own extreme position on abortion

Last June, the US Supreme Court’s landmark Dobbs v. Jackson decision returned the debate of abortion back to the states.  Facing an unenthused base, record inflation and poor polling numbers in President Biden, the court’s decision might have provided a lifeline to sinking Democrats in the upcoming midterms.

The social debate regarding life and abortion has always been controversial, but the SCOTUS decision will now force state lawmakers (and candidates) to make tough decision as they roll out public positions.  Given the balance of power in some state legislatures and expensive and critical Governor’s races, the stakes couldn’t be higher.   The pro-life and pro-abortion factions are sizable yet miles apart.  Both are steadfast in their beliefs.  The fight for independent and persuadable voters has already become nasty.

On one hand, many pro-lifers have rigid beliefs that abortion is murder and all abortions and use of fetal tissue should be outlawed.  On the other side, pro-abortion advocates including Planned Parenthood don’t consider person-hood of a fetus and support abortion up to the moment of birth.  Many have gone so far as to allow for the horrendous act of partial-birth abortion.

Democrats might be correct that public opinion is on their side.  According to the most recent Marquette Poll, 60% of voters oppose the overturning of Roe v Wade.  62% of independents oppose and not surprising, 92% of self-identified Democrats oppose the court’s decision.   30% believe abortion should be legal in all cases while a slim 5% believe abortion should be illegal in all cases including as a result rape and incest. 

Keen to public sentiment, it didn’t take Democrats long to jump at the SCOTUS decision.  Republican candidates in tough primaries laid out their pro-life credentials while liberal reporters and debate moderators set the trap.  Every candidate was pressed to be on record of his or her position on the controversial and unpopular belief to ban abortion even in the case of rape or incest. 

Given the headlines from a friendly media, pro-abortion candidates and third-party organizations like Planned Parenthood (whose entire existence is jeopardized by the Dobbs decision) took aim at any and all statewide Republicans.  Whether true or not, the ‘too-extreme’ mantra swiftly followed in rounds of well-funded ads. 

What’s missing from the conversation is data on how common or rare abortion stemming from rape or incest actually is.  Make no mistake; rape and incest are horrific acts that cause long-lasting emotional damage to victims.  But to believe the story being told, one would think our nation if filled with rapists and sick fathers, brothers and uncles.  The data is clear. These instances, though tragic, are nowhere as common as we’re led to believe.

According to a Guttmacher Institute study covered by USAToday and others,  just 1% of women who obtain an abortion do so because of rape, and less than 0.5% who have abortions became pregnant through incest.  While the position to ban abortion in these cases may seem extreme, they are also extremely rare. 

Medical advances in obstetrics and ultrasound technologies compounded by an alarming 32% of births via caesarean section have minimized the risks during pregnancy and need for abortion to protect the life of the mother.  The uncomfortable fact is that the vast majorities or abortions are based on career and economic choices.  Tragically, many of those happen past 24 weeks of gestation where the fetus can often survive outside the womb. 

If conservatives are to be held to task by the press for 100% pro-life views without exception, liberals must also be held to account for their extreme views on late-term and partial birth abortion.  With rare exception, Democrats beholden to the pro-abortion lobby repeatedly vote to block efforts limiting abortion in the critical third trimester.  Life is worth protecting.  Americans understand that viable unborn children feel pain and there are certain points when aborting a child that could survive outside the womb should no longer be an option. 

To be pro-life mean one constantly strives to lessen the rate of abortions performed regardless of the reason.  For that, pro-lifers should not be apologetic.