Abortion used to be a winner issue for Republicans, but now it is a liability. For decades, they've used it to get working class whites to vote against their own economic interests, but now the issue is backfiring on them, as Akin and Murdouck can attest.
Not that I would call on them to give up their principles... Most sensible people would agree that less abortions would be a good thing. It's how you get there that makes the difference.
First and foremost, they need to learn to live with Roe v. Wade. On a practical matter, SCOTUS is never going to overturn that ruling. Not at this point. Only three justices would vote to overturn it (Scalia, Thomas and Alito). Kennedy clearly won't, and given the way he balked at overturning ObamaCare, I doubt Roberts would, either. Democrats will probably make the next two appointments.
But even if they did get their way, most states would pass abortion laws that reflect the status quo. And it would probably lead to more Democrats at the statehouse level.
Second, just like they need to stop sounding like racists when talking about immigration, they need to stop talking like misogynists when talking about this issue. The word "rape" should never be qualified with an adjective . And when a radio loudmouth starts calling a woman vile names for expressing her opinion on family planning, every elected Republican should denounce him when he does it. The very fact I have to write these sentences tells us just how off the tracks the GOP has gotten on this issue.
So once you've accomplished the first two, you get about the third one, which is, accepting you will always have some abortion, how do you have LESS abortions? Sadly, this would probably be the hardest pill to swallow. It would mean putting the needs of pregnant women above those of big corporations, to start with. It would mean real meaningful family and medical leave. It would mean common sense sex education in the schools. And, yes, it would mean embracing universal health care.
You can compare a country like the Philippines, where abortion is illegal, but 500-800K women have them regardless, or you can have a country like France, where abortion is legal, and the government pays for them, but they also pay for all those other things. As a result, France has half the per capita abortions that we do.
I guess it depends on what your goal really is, and if you really mean what you say.
Not that I would call on them to give up their principles... Most sensible people would agree that less abortions would be a good thing. It's how you get there that makes the difference.
First and foremost, they need to learn to live with Roe v. Wade. On a practical matter, SCOTUS is never going to overturn that ruling. Not at this point. Only three justices would vote to overturn it (Scalia, Thomas and Alito). Kennedy clearly won't, and given the way he balked at overturning ObamaCare, I doubt Roberts would, either. Democrats will probably make the next two appointments.
But even if they did get their way, most states would pass abortion laws that reflect the status quo. And it would probably lead to more Democrats at the statehouse level.
Second, just like they need to stop sounding like racists when talking about immigration, they need to stop talking like misogynists when talking about this issue. The word "rape" should never be qualified with an adjective . And when a radio loudmouth starts calling a woman vile names for expressing her opinion on family planning, every elected Republican should denounce him when he does it. The very fact I have to write these sentences tells us just how off the tracks the GOP has gotten on this issue.
So once you've accomplished the first two, you get about the third one, which is, accepting you will always have some abortion, how do you have LESS abortions? Sadly, this would probably be the hardest pill to swallow. It would mean putting the needs of pregnant women above those of big corporations, to start with. It would mean real meaningful family and medical leave. It would mean common sense sex education in the schools. And, yes, it would mean embracing universal health care.
You can compare a country like the Philippines, where abortion is illegal, but 500-800K women have them regardless, or you can have a country like France, where abortion is legal, and the government pays for them, but they also pay for all those other things. As a result, France has half the per capita abortions that we do.
I guess it depends on what your goal really is, and if you really mean what you say.
