# Will the Republicans keep beating the abortion drum after this year's election? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [November 7, 2012, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214 "2012-11-07T14:01:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 10
**Author:** ![Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7ba0ec/32.png) [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omg_a_Black_Conservative)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2012, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/181 "2012-11-21T16:27:28Z")
> [@ladyfoxfyre](#): > > You mean when they added a rider to a budget bill to defund Planned Parenthood? This is a very interesting perspective indeed. The Republicans quietly introduce a bunch of bills, the Democrats publicly refuse to quietly go along with that bullshit, and it’s the Democrats that get blamed for making such a fuss. Why, if they’d just shut up and go along with it, there would be no problem! > > See, here’s the thing, OMG. You don’t get to have YOUR cake and eat it too. Your team isn’t allowed to just pass willy nilly whatever fucking thing they feel like, and the other side rolls over and lets them do it quietly. When your actions are being brought to public attention, even if you don’t like talking about the things you’ve been passing or trying to pass in secret, that’s not the Democrats trying to make abortion a political issue this year. You’ve already made it one by passing actual laws that restrict abortion access. Just because someone is calling you on it doesn’t mean they are the ones making it an issue. The issue is that they continue to pass wide-reaching abortion restrictions and keep trying to pretend it’s no big deal. That IS an issue. Ahem. Cause and effect apparently don’t exist for you guys. At least, Republicans are the cause and Democrats the effect. Never the opposite. Now it’s funny how you seemingly forget 2008 to 2010 (or the topic of the thread). Obama pledged he would sign FOCA. He rescinded the Mexico City Gag rule. He reinstated funds for overseas family planning organizations. During HCR, there was a push to include abortion rights as a medically covered procedure, which ultimately led to the showdown with Stupek in the House and Nelson in the Senate. Etc. etc. etc. All unpopular, especially among conservatives. Of course, none of that matters to you. Now using the “logic” being presented in this thread, the GOP swept into office via dissatisfaction regarding the Democrat’s abortion stance. According to JSLE, that Republicans will attack abortion rights once elected. If this is true and they swept into office in 2010, THEN THEY DID EXACTLY WHAT THEY WERE ELECTED, IF NOT EXPECTED, TO DO. But you will reject this premise, oddly enough. In fact, you completely refuse to acknowledge that Republicans swept into office in 2010 if in thanks to the Democrats abortion stance, yet you argue just this in reference to 2012. Mind boggling. But that’s far removed from the original point. Republicans did not beat the abortion drum this year-- rightly or wrongly-- because they (me too) figured campaigning on the economy was enough. This deflection crap is just that-- deflection. Obama played to the portion of his base that cares the most about abortion (White, female, middle-upperclassmen, suburban). The only abortion drum beating was on part of Democrats, in order to drum up support. BTW\> It bears worth pointing out. Not only were most of the GOP’s abortion restrictions supported by the majority, but there is a semi-large bloc of Democrats who are closer in their views of social issues to the Republican party. ---
**Author:** ![Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7ba0ec/32.png) [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omg_a_Black_Conservative)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2012, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/182 "2012-11-21T16:36:39Z")
> [@GIGObuster](#): > > It is easy when in reality you are not dealing with what was said, so yeah, no Republican repudiated what they voted before so it was still in their agenda. > > And it is clear that you are just willfully ignoring that in 2010 the Tea Party and supporters concentrated on taxation, (that by pure coincidence it lead to the republican representatives to vote in favor of the rich polluters) they even said many times before that social issues like abortion were not supposed to be important for these “new” representative republicans, they only demonstrated that they fooled most people in 2010 but less in 2012; but tea partiers continue to fool many today, even you. Interesting how this argument goes. So your new argument is that “no one” expected the GOP to try to restrict abortion after the 2010 midterms and that 2012 was the proverbial pushback? I just want to make sure before I offer up a response. ---
**Author:** ![Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7ba0ec/32.png) [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omg_a_Black_Conservative)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2012, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/183 "2012-11-21T16:38:27Z")
Also, stupid autocorrect. Suburban should be urban. ---
**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:** [November 21, 2012, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/184 "2012-11-21T16:41:44Z")
> [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](#): > > BTW\> It bears worth pointing out. Not only were most of the GOP’s abortion restrictions supported by the majority, but there is a semi-large bloc of Democrats who are closer in their views of social issues to the Republican party. This sounds to me like one of those “facts” you’re incredibly confident about but upon a closer look turns out to be false (or at least misleading- have you at all re-assessed your confidence level in the sources in which you find these “facts” since the election?). A personhood ballot initiative failed in _Mississippi_, of all states. [A plurality self-identifies](http://www.livescience.com/22654-american-public-opinion-abortion.html)as “pro-life”, perhaps- but many of these supposed pro-lifers actually don’t support outlawing abortion. Only a tiny minority of Americans actually support banning abortion in the case of rape and incest. In fact, about [66% of Americans](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abortion_in_the_United_States#Public_opinion)believe that 1st trimester abortions should be generally _legal_. The fact is that the majority of Americans want the majority of abortions that are actually performed to be legal (the vast majority are performed in the 1st trimester). ---
**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:** [November 21, 2012, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/185 "2012-11-21T16:57:33Z")
On second thought, **OMG** , it’s not fair of me to bring up your prediction and the election results. The rest of my post stands. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2012, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/186 "2012-11-21T16:58:12Z")
> [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](#): > > Interesting how this argument goes. So your new argument is that “no one” expected the GOP to try to restrict abortion after the 2010 midterms and that 2012 was the proverbial pushback? I just want to make sure before I offer up a response. Not new, it is still the same but you at least show how silly the avoidance of it was. Most in the reality community knew that it was more than likely that besides the front the tea baggers showed of being for less taxation and being against “big government”, that they also would follow the conservative agenda regarding abortion, where the foolishness came was in assuming that they would not come in with extreme woo woo reasons to justify their attempts at even banning abortion in cases of rape and incest. That was not what the republican representatives promised in 2010, and in that election the focus, once again, was taxation and being against big government. Abortion was relegated to almost a footnote and in the context of taxation also: [http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544\_162-20017428-503544.html](http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20017428-503544.html) The point here is the same, the Republicans from 2010 got the majority in the house by telling most moderates and independents, and women, that it was safe to vote for them as abortion was not in the agenda, that election was supposed to be about the economy and taxes. > [@](#): > > In fact, many of the leaders of the Tea Party movement - DeMint, Pence, Sarah Palin, Michele Bachmann and Christine O’Donnell among them - are social conservatives. But their rhetoric suggests that, for the most part, they recognize that their supporters are energized by fiscal issues, not subjects like homosexuality and abortion. And the Pledge to America is another piece of evidence that – at least for now – social conservative concerns appear to have been relegated to the GOP’s back burner. Events and votes showed that that rhetoric was just a fig leaf, but it was good enough to fool many conservatives that are still pro-choice. Indeed, as what happened with several women, their energy in support of Republicans was zapped as soon as the extreme woo woo regarding abortion came to light. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2012, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/187 "2012-11-21T17:01:56Z")
> [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](#): > > Ahem. > > Cause and effect apparently don’t exist for you guys. At least, Republicans are the cause and Democrats the effect. Never the opposite. Now it’s funny how you seemingly forget 2008 to 2010 (or the topic of the thread). > > Obama pledged he would sign FOCA. > He rescinded the Mexico City Gag rule. > He reinstated funds for overseas family planning organizations. > During HCR, there was a push to include abortion rights as a medically covered procedure, which ultimately led to the showdown with Stupek in the House and Nelson in the Senate. > Etc. etc. etc. > > All unpopular. Heaven knows I want your party to become a laughingstock. The fun thing for me is that I can tell you the truth and I don’t have to worry that it will somehow bite me because you aren’t going to believe me anyway. But if only the people who are in your party vote, you’ll get a result that mirrors the beliefs of your party. If only the people in the other party vote, you’ll get a result that mirrors the beliefs of the other party. When a whole host of people vote who are not necessarily beholden to either party, and when you can show that specific issues seem to have driven those people to the polls, it makes more sense to talk about what those issues are and how recent events may have shaped their perception of those issues. Old white people always vote, and they skew Republican. If no one else votes, then the old white people will elect a whole bunch of Republicans. In midterms, these are very reliable voters. Other voters are not as reliable. When few people go out to vote, it’s hard to extrapolate from there about the views of the populace as a whole when it comes to specific issues. It’s even harder when those specific issues were not widely trumpeted leading up to the election or there hadn’t been recent activity on those issues. What’s that I hear? Oh, it’s the sound of wind whistling, the sound of crickets chirping, and the sound of my words falling on deaf ears. _sad harmonica_ ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2012, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/188 "2012-11-21T17:13:55Z")
> [@](#): > > Republicans did not beat the abortion drum this year– “Yes, my Emperor they are lovely and beautiful robes…” ---
**Author:** ![Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7ba0ec/32.png) [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omg_a_Black_Conservative)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2012, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/189 "2012-11-21T17:26:46Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > This sounds to me like one of those “facts” you’re incredibly confident about but upon a closer look turns out to be false (or at least misleading- have you at all re-assessed your confidence level in the sources in which you find these “facts” since the election?). A personhood ballot initiative failed in _Mississippi_, of all states. [A plurality self-identifies](http://www.livescience.com/22654-american-public-opinion-abortion.html)as “pro-life”, perhaps- but many of these supposed pro-lifers actually don’t support outlawing abortion. Only a tiny minority of Americans actually support banning abortion in the case of rape and incest. In fact, about [66% of Americans](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abortion_in_the_United_States#Public_opinion)believe that 1st trimester abortions should be generally _legal_. > > The fact is that the majority of Americans want the majority of abortions that are actually performed to be legal (the vast majority are performed in the 1st trimester). 1.) Remember when gay marriage got shot down in California? Losing in a state generally sympathetic to your cause isn’t exactly a harbinger of soon and gloom. It happens. 2.) Way to cherry pick data. > **[Abortion](https://news.gallup.com/poll/1576/abortion.aspx)** > > With respect to the abortion issue, would you consider yourself to be pro-choice or pro-life? Do you think abortions should be legal under any circumstances, legal only under certain circumstances, or illegal in all circumstances? ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2012, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/190 "2012-11-21T17:31:38Z")
> [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](#): > > 1.) Remember when gay marriage got shot down in California? Losing in a state generally sympathetic to your cause isn’t exactly a harbinger of soon and gloom. It happens. > > 2.) Way to cherry pick data. > > [Abortion | Gallup Historical Trends](http://www.gallup.com/poll/1576/abortion.aspx) So, your poll shows that 20% of people agree with the Republican platform. Mine, from the venerable Rasmussen, shows > [@](#): > > [More voters than ever now identify themselves as pro-choice when it comes to abortion, and most rate the issue as important to how they vote. > > The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of Likely U.S. Voters shows that 54% describe themselves as pro-choice on the issue of abortion, while 38% say they are pro-life.]([54% Are Pro-Choice, 38% Pro-Life - Rasmussen Reports®](http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/current_events/abortion/54_are_pro_choice_38_pro_life)) As I said upthread when I posted this, Rasmussen is a crappy polling organization, but their bias is Republican (at least in election polls). Think how bad that really means things might be. ---
**Author:** ![Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7ba0ec/32.png) [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omg_a_Black_Conservative)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2012, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/191 "2012-11-21T17:32:25Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > This sounds to me like one of those “facts” you’re incredibly confident about but upon a closer look turns out to be false (or at least misleading- have you at all re-assessed your confidence level in the sources in which you find these “facts” since the election?). A personhood ballot initiative failed in _Mississippi_, of all states. [A plurality self-identifies](http://www.livescience.com/22654-american-public-opinion-abortion.html)as “pro-life”, perhaps- but many of these supposed pro-lifers actually don’t support outlawing abortion. Only a tiny minority of Americans actually support banning abortion in the case of rape and incest. In fact, about [66% of Americans](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abortion_in_the_United_States#Public_opinion)believe that 1st trimester abortions should be generally _legal_. > > The fact is that the majority of Americans want the majority of abortions that are actually performed to be legal (the vast majority are performed in the 1st trimester). 1.) Remember when gay marriage got shot down in California? Losing in a state generally sympathetic to your cause isn’t exactly a harbinger of I’ll need. It happens. 2.) Way to cherry pick data. Never mind, illegal in most or all is larger than always legal or most, or the inflection point in the mid-90s, pay attention to the fact that “cannot afford a baby” garners sub-40% support. > **[Abortion](https://news.gallup.com/poll/1576/abortion.aspx)** > > With respect to the abortion issue, would you consider yourself to be pro-choice or pro-life? Do you think abortions should be legal under any circumstances, legal only under certain circumstances, or illegal in all circumstances? ---
**Author:** ![Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7ba0ec/32.png) [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omg_a_Black_Conservative)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2012, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/192 "2012-11-21T17:36:10Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > So, your poll shows that 20% of people agree with the Republican platform. > > Mine, from the venerable Rasmussen, shows > > As I said upthread when I posted this, Rasmussen is a crappy polling organization, but their bias is Republican (at least in election polls). Think how bad that really means things might be. Registered voters vs. all American adults. Big difference. Not to mention pro-life has been sub-40 in their poll for a while now (about two years) But continue on. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2012, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/193 "2012-11-21T17:44:12Z")
> [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](#): > > Registered voters vs. all American adults. Big difference. Not to mention pro-life has been sub-40 in their poll for a while now (about two years) But continue on. So, this poll-reading thing is still tricky for you, huh? “This survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on November 10-11, 2012 by Rasmussen Reports.” And how does the pro-life side getting under 40% for two years actually bolster your argument? I honestly have no idea what you think you are demonstrating. If the pro-life side has had weak support for two years, how is it likely that the 2010 election was a referendum on abortion instead of what people at the time (voters, candidates, and pundits) said it was a referendum on? ---
**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:** [November 21, 2012, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/194 "2012-11-21T17:49:02Z")
> [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](#): > > 2.) Way to cherry pick data. Never mind, illegal in most or all is larger than always legal or most, or the inflection point in the mid-90s, pay attention to the fact that “cannot afford a baby” garners sub-40% support. > > [Abortion | Gallup Historical Trends](http://www.gallup.com/poll/1576/abortion.aspx) So you respond to my “cherry-picked” data with cherry-picked data of your own? Not terribly convincing. If your argument is that America sides with the Republicans on abortion, the data doesn’t show this at all. If the Republican party thought that abortion was a national political winner for them, then they would have campaigned on it heavily. They didn’t. The Democrats did (and won the vast majority of the elections in which the abortion was heavily discussed). ---
**Author:** ![Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7ba0ec/32.png) [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omg_a_Black_Conservative)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2012, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/195 "2012-11-21T17:55:31Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > So, this poll-reading thing is still tricky for you, huh? “This survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on November 10-11, 2012 by Rasmussen Reports.” > > And how does the pro-life side getting under 40% for two years actually bolster your argument? I honestly have no idea what you think you are demonstrating. If the pro-life side has had weak support for two years, how is it likely that the 2010 election was a referendum on abortion instead of what people at the time (voters, candidates, and pundits) said it was a referendum on? Okay. Likely voters, which is an even smaller pool than either registered voters or all American adults. You’re the the who trotted it out as showing some terrible news for Republicans,even though the numbers are similar to where they have been for a while in Rasmussen’s poll. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2012, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/196 "2012-11-21T18:05:04Z")
> [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](#): > > Okay. Likely voters, which is an even smaller pool than either registered voters or all American adults. You’re the the who trotted it out as showing some terrible news for Republicans,even though the numbers are similar to where they have been for a while in Rasmussen’s poll. Uh. The Gallup poll is of American adults, with a few registered voter data points. This will strongly lean Democratic. The Rasmussen poll is of likely voters, which strongly leans Republican. Neither of them has good news for the Republican party. I can’t understand why you think showing terrible news for a long time for the Republican party is less bad than showing terrible news for a short time for the Republican party on this issue. I think this is likely because you are just flailing around, trying to find some way of justifying your position or deflecting the argument. But again, you tried to argue that if 2012 was a referendum on Republican abortion positions, then 2010 must have been a referendum on Democratic abortion positions, that Republicans talking about abortion and attempting to act on abortion legislation is somehow not bringing it up, that the Democrats are somehow creating the issue out of nothing when they react to Republicans talking about abortion or Republicans acting on abortion, and that the thread is dripping with irony because of something that just makes it do that. Like gangbusters! But again, if you wanna convince yourself the Republicans did nothing at all between 2010 and 2012 that in any way led to or even contributed to their losses, my goodness, you just knock yourself out! ---
**Author:** ![Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7ba0ec/32.png) [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omg_a_Black_Conservative)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2012, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/197 "2012-11-21T18:05:34Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > So you respond to my “cherry-picked” data with cherry-picked data of your own? Not terribly convincing. If your argument is that America sides with the Republicans on abortion, the data doesn’t show this at all. > > If the Republican party thought that abortion was a national political winner for them, then they would have campaigned on it heavily. They didn’t. The Democrats did (and won the vast majority of the elections in which the abortion was heavily discussed). That’s where your trimester claim came from. As is is, you made the claim that Americans want the majority of abortions to be legal by looking at a general question and ignoring the situation based questions. I await your response. Virtually every Republican candidate for president has made exceptions for rape or incest. No Democratic candidate has ever said to restrict abortions on the basis that a woman couldn’t afford to raise a child. ---
**Author:** ![Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7ba0ec/32.png) [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omg_a_Black_Conservative)\ **Post date:** [November 21, 2012, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/198 "2012-11-21T18:21:12Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > Uh. > > The Gallup poll is of American adults, with a few registered voter data points. This will strongly lean Democratic. > > The Rasmussen poll is of likely voters, which strongly leans Republican. > > Neither of them has good news for the Republican party. I can’t understand why you think showing terrible news for a long time for the Republican party is less bad than showing terrible news for a short time for the Republican party on this issue. I think this is likely because you are just flailing around, trying to find some way of justifying your position or deflecting the argument. Did you happen to look at exit polls this year? Not only was turnout depressed, but Obama did better at churning out his base this time around than Romney. Kind of unsurprising a result you’d get with Rasmussen, don’t you think? No, of course not. As it stands, I’d like to know what Gallup numbers you are reading > [@](#): > > But again, you tried to argue that if 2012 was a referendum on Republican abortion positions, then 2010 must have been a referendum on Democratic abortion positions, that Republicans talking about abortion and attempting to act on abortion legislation is somehow not bringing it up, that the Democrats are somehow creating the issue out of nothing when they react to Republicans talking about abortion or Republicans acting on abortion, and that the thread is dripping with irony because of something that just makes it do that. Like gangbusters! And this simply goes back to my original point. 2008 to 2010 don’t exist for you guys, and Republican abortion restrictions materialized out of thing air. As I typically say, very convenient for you. > [@](#): > > But again, if you wanna convince yourself the Republicans did nothing at all between 2010 and 2012 that in any way led to or even contributed to their losses, my goodness, you just knock yourself out! Another way to look at it; Obama got 10m less votes than he did in 2008. Maybe they were all turned off about by the Democrats abortion posturing? ---
**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:** [November 21, 2012, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/199 "2012-11-21T18:21:25Z")
> [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](#): > > That’s where your trimester claim came from. As is is, you made the claim that Americans want the majority of abortions to be legal by looking at a general question and ignoring the situation based questions. I await your response. My response? 2/3rds of Americans say 1st trimester abortions should, in general, be legal. Then a portion of these seem to contradict themselves in some of the situation-based questions. I’m not sure what it indicates- perhaps many Americans just haven’t really thought it through, or they don’t understand some of the intricacies, or they’re just extremely fickle. But it certainly isn’t some clear indication that most Americans side with the Republicans on abortion. I think, like the analyst in my first link said, that most Americans are uncomfortable with abortion, yet most Americans don’t want it to be illegal. I think this is because most Americans would want their sister or daughter to be allowed to get an abortion in a stereotypical circumstance (like gets drunk, has sex, condom breaks, gets pregnant, etc) even if they don’t really approve of it. ---
**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:** [November 21, 2012, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214/200 "2012-11-21T18:26:11Z")
> [@Omg\_a\_Black\_Conservative](#): > > Another way to look at it; Obama got 10m less votes than he did in 2008. This is comically and pathetically wrong- they haven’t even certified the vote count in many states yet! Right now, Obama’s total is about 5m less in 2012 than 2008, but it’s not finalized, and probably won’t be for weeks (it’s likely that his total will be larger this year than in 2008, but we’ll see). Where do you get your data from- Donald Trump? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214.md?page=9) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-the-republicans-keep-beating-the-abortion-drum-after-this-years-election/640214.md?page=11)