Joseph Petrich

Mr. McGill
Political Science Honors, p. 5
2 October 2009

“Abortion Support Falls Sharply – New Research Finds”

“Abortion support falls sharply, new research finds,” by Richard Allen Greene, cites a
new study that shows that Americans are now split approximately 50% pro-life and 50% pro-
choice. This marks a 7% drop in support for abortion, and an increase by 4% in pro-life beliefs.
This study comes towards the end of a year marked by two abortion-rights related killings, one
of an abortion-performing doctor, and one of a pro-life activist. Also worthy to note is that the
abortion debate has made it to the public stage through healthcare reform and the debate whether
to fund abortions with federal money per the Hyde Amendment. The last time the Supreme
Court ruled on abortion was in 2007, upholding a late-term abortion ban, and the Court has not
taken on any such cases for this coming year. Numbers of actual abortions in 2005 from 2000, at
1.21 million compared with 1.31 million, and percentage of women having abortions has steadily
declined to about 2% since the peak in 1981 at 3%.
There are many reasons why this article is significant. First, the article mentions that
abortion has been debated in congress recently with health care reform. In fact, in the past few
days, the Senate Finance Committee has voted to limit health care money to abortion in cases of
rape, incest, or life-threatening complications, holding to the Hyde Amendment. Also, a bill that
would have made people pay extra for abortion coverage was voted down by a 13-10 margin, in
which one Democrat voted for the measure. Second, it is rare for a mainstream media outlet
such as CNN to report on issues favorable to pro-life Americans. This is most likely because
Americans have for so long been pro-choice, and the media wants to cater to the public.
I was surprised to see this article because the mainstream media has not reported on this
trend, though I remember a study being published earlier this year conveying the same data. As
a pro-lifer, I am glad to see this trend, yet dismayed that 40% of Americans do not know what
President Obama’s views are. In a way, this is proof that the Electoral College is necessary. If
40% of Americans cannot define their President’s views on such a major issue, how can they be
expected to make an educated choice when voting? Abortion is not the largest issue in terms of
coverage, but a candidate’s stance is mentioned in almost every introductory article written. For
example, when I was researching the mayoral candidates for the Seattle primary, I was surprised
to see each candidate’s stance on abortion, as it is largely irrelevant for the position of mayor.
However, I would not be surprised to see this trend in increase of publicity continue over the
next few elections, as more Americans become pro-life, and the media continues to please the
public.