# The abortion issue is a losing issue for Republicans **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [January 22, 2013, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999 "2013-01-22T13:48:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2013, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/41 "2013-01-28T21:35:21Z")
> [@jtgain](#): > > Here you have a majority that implicitly reject the holding of Roe. No, _Roe v. Wade_ does not rule that abortion should automatically be legal “all of the time”. Which is why every state has abortion laws that criminalize abortion in certain circumstances without running afoul of _Roe_. Having abortion be legal “all of the time”, meaning “without any restrictions whatsoever”, is not what _Roe_ upholds. So the majority who support having some legal restrictions are not in fact rejecting _Roe_, implicitly or otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2013, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/42 "2013-01-28T23:05:23Z")
> [@lance\_strongarm](#): > > Well, to be fair, some (like Mourdock) weren’t defending rapists, just saying that they believe abortion is always wrong. I respect him for being consistent in his beliefs, even if I don’t agree. The worst hypocrites are those who would ban abortion but with a rape/incest exception. Actually, I think the worst hypocrites are those who think abortion should be completely illegal for everyone (except for themselves or for their own wife, daughter, mistress). There are plenty about who think “the only moral abortion is MY abortion” ---
**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2013, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/43 "2013-01-28T23:08:41Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > Actually, I think the worst hypocrites are those who think abortion should be completely illegal for everyone (except for themselves or for their own wife, daughter, mistress). There are plenty about who think “the only moral abortion is MY abortion” Well, yes, that would be worse. And the funny thing is that those types aren’t hypothetical either, as I’m sure you know. There’s [one in Congress.](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/15/scott-desjarlais-abortion_n_2139110.html) ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2013, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/44 "2013-01-28T23:12:38Z")
> [@Peremensoe](#): > > But that’s just it. Going for incremental/situational restrictions on abortion access at the state level, rather than campaigning for a federal reversal, was a _deliberate strategic shift_ on their part. It worked, both in materially shutting down services (several states have only one or a few clinics, Mississippi’s last one is on the brink; with travel burdens and legal hoops, many women have effectively no access), You bet it worked. Really, the primary thing that this group wants is for POOR women to have no access to abortion, while BETTER OFF women have the option. Because, don’tcha know, rich girls are not slutty things that get themselves knocked up. They are little innocents who “made a mistake”. These differences are important. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2013, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/45 "2013-01-29T00:50:12Z")
> [@](#): > > I was listening to talk radio this morning and the host brought up a good point, one that is usually ignored by those who are pro-life. Should the unthinkable happen and abortion is made illegal, these people should have to answer how long a jail sentence they think a woman seeking an abortion should get, and how long a sentence should doctors who perform them get. This is supposed to be some great dilemma? OK, for the sake of argument, call it 5 years for anyone performing an abortion. What now? ---
**Author:** ![pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pseudotriton_ruber_ruber)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2013, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/46 "2013-01-29T01:16:11Z")
how many years for the woman? ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2013, 10:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/47 "2013-01-29T10:10:04Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > This is supposed to be some great dilemma? OK, for the sake of argument, call it 5 years for anyone performing an abortion. What now? I don’t think it’s a great dilemma, but the amount of people who actually want to imprison women for getting abortions is far, far lower (I believe) then the amount of people who want to outlaw abortion. So the pro-life side doesn’t talk about it much, because that would be very unpopular. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2013, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/48 "2013-01-29T12:34:41Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > Did you mean people who confuse polls about being “pro-life” with polls about whether abortion should be legal or not? I think we’ve seen that many people self-identify as “pro-life”, meaning they wouldn’t get an abortion themselves, but they still don’t want all abortions to be illegal. That’s one of my Wikipedia userboxes: “This user is pro-life but supports a woman’s right to choose.” Don’t like abortions? Then help prevent unwanted pregnancies and make contraception widely, easily available. Seems to me that would be a no-brainer. Hillary Clinton got that exactly right, years ago, but I wonder if anybody even listened. Anyway, I am signed up, with no reservations, for the fight to preserve women’s choice and women’s lives. ---
**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2013, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/49 "2013-01-29T13:49:56Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > I don’t think it’s a great dilemma, but the amount of people who actually want to imprison women for getting abortions is far, far lower (I believe) then the amount of people who want to outlaw abortion. So the pro-life side doesn’t talk about it much, because that would be very unpopular. And because it makes them ENORMOUS hypocrites. If abortion is murder, the pregnant woman is unequivocally as guilty of murder as a doctor. Yet they refuse to live up to their own beliefs. ---
**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2013, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/50 "2013-01-29T13:50:57Z")
> [@Johanna](#): > > That’s one of my Wikipedia userboxes: “This user is pro-life but supports a woman’s right to choose.” You’re saying that’s you? You call yourself prolife but you’re also pro-choice? That’s a confusing use of terminology. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2013, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/51 "2013-01-29T15:26:47Z")
> [@lance\_strongarm](#): > > You’re saying that’s you? You call yourself prolife but you’re also pro-choice? That’s a confusing use of terminology. I don’t think it’s confusing at all. Not many of us are “anti-life”, despite how some want to paint us. The vast, vast majority of those who are in favor of a woman’s right to choose are also of the opinion that abortions should be greatly reduced. What we think, though is the way to reduce them is not to outlaw them, or forbid poor women from getting abortions, but rather to decrease the amount of unwanted pregnancies through education and birth control. It’s interesting that many on the “anti-choice” side are also the same folks who are against birth control, family planning and sex education. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2013, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/52 "2013-01-29T15:27:23Z")
Not really. Why should people opposed to abortion get to define the term pro-life? ---
**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2013, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/53 "2013-01-29T15:32:36Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Not really. Why should people opposed to abortion get to define the term pro-life? Because they did it first. You can call yourself whatever you want. But if you go around saying you are pro-life, most people are going to think that means you are anti-abortion. ---
**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2013, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/54 "2013-01-29T15:34:20Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > I don’t think it’s confusing at all. Not many of us are “anti-life”, despite how some want to paint us. Sure. But it’s still confusing. If your point is just to say “pro-life” is a bad label because it implies that pro-choice = “anti-life” then just say that. > [@](#): > > The vast, vast majority of those who are in favor of a woman’s right to choose are also of the opinion that abortions should be greatly reduced. Why? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2013, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/55 "2013-01-29T15:41:40Z")
Because ideally those people won’t be getting pregnant in the first place. In the earliest stages, an abortion is a minor outpatient medical procedure with minimal risk, but it’s not risk-free. Later in the pregnancy, the scope of the procedure and the risk of injury to the mother increases. Besides that, abortions are expensive and unpleasant. ---
**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2013, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/56 "2013-01-29T15:50:38Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Because ideally those people won’t be getting pregnant in the first place. In the earliest stages, an abortion is a minor outpatient medical procedure with minimal risk, but it’s not risk-free. Later in the pregnancy, the scope of the procedure and the risk of injury to the mother increases. Besides that, abortions are expensive and unpleasant. Okay, but why is that really relevant? You want to make risky, expensive, unpleasant medical procedures less common. Who doesn’t? I just don’t understand why you’d bring it up. Are you just talking about how we should have more birth control? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2013, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/57 "2013-01-29T15:58:11Z")
I can’t speak for **EP** , but yes - though their are enough prospective adoptive parents to swallow up pretty much every baby born ever. Probably less teenage sex would be good, too; there’s nothing wrong with abstinence education. Abstinence-only education is fucking lunacy, though. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2013, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/58 "2013-01-29T16:03:23Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > Yes. I sill wish there was more of a trend from the pro-lifers to reduce the \*need \*for abortions through more progressive economic, social and healthcare programs, but alas… Amen! (That’s me, btw). I self-identify as pro-life, and although I would be opposed to making most abortions illegal, I strongly support making all the alternatives to abortion much more attractive instead. ---
**Author:** ![lance\_strongarm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/87869e/32.png) [@lance\_strongarm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lance_strongarm)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2013, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/59 "2013-01-29T16:04:41Z")
> [@Skammer](#): > > Amen! (That’s me, btw). I self-identify as pro-life, and although I would be opposed to making most abortions illegal, I strongly support making all the alternatives to abortion much more attractive instead. Why do you self-identify as pro-life when you support keeping abortion legal? I just want to understand your thinking, not challenging it (though I might ;)). ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2013, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999/60 "2013-01-29T16:23:52Z")
> [@lance\_strongarm](#): > > Why do you self-identify as pro-life when you support keeping abortion legal? I just want to understand your thinking, not challenging it (though I might ;)). Because I’m anti-abortion. From a religious perspective, I find every abortion tragic and heartbreaking. But I also respect the fact that I do not have the right, legally or morally, to impose my beliefs about abortion onto other people. Plus, the reality is, outlawing abortion creates more tragedy in the lives of women and unwanted babies. So if I hate abortion, but don’t want to victimize women or babies, the solution is to give women options that are better: sex education (including but not limited to abstinence); easily obtainable birth control without stigma; streamlined and affordable domestic adoption laws; subsidized job training and child care for single mothers; affordable health care (pre- and post-natal), etc. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-abortion-issue-is-a-losing-issue-for-republicans/647999.md?page=4)