Gallup’s latest poll on Americans’ views about abortion is fascinating for at least one reason: it demonstrates how Planned Parenthood is actually more extreme on abortion than even people who identify themselves as “pro-choice”
For instance, the poll found that 79% of people who say they are pro-choice want to make abortion illegal in the third trimester, a majority (52%) of pro-choice people even want abortion to be illegal in the second trimester as well!
Planned Parenthood wants all abortions to be legal.
In addition, the poll found that 63% of pro-choice people say they want to ban partial-birth abortions.
Again, Planned Parenthood wants all abortions to be legal.
Finally, the poll found that 60% of pro-choice people say they want parental consent for minors before they have an abortion, and 60% of pro-choice people want a 24-hour waiting period for women seeking an abortion.
Planned Parenthood is against efforts to introduce these practices into law.
On these issues – banning second and third trimester abortions (and especially the heinous practice of partial-birth abortion), on introducing parental consent and 24-hour waiting periods … a majority of pro-choice people agree with pro-life folks.
Planned Parenthood, in other words, doesn’t even represent the views of the Americans who are predisposed to support them.
The pro-life movement has much to gain by highlighting the fact that “common ground” solutions to reducing the abortion rate such as the ones mentioned above have support not only among pro-lifers, but by a majority (and sometimes a large majority) of people who claim to be pro-choice. Planned Parenthood always tries to paint us as the extremists – turns out the opposite is true! Refuse to be marginalized. It’s Planned Parenthood that has explaining to do.
[Cross posted at CatholicVote.org]
