all from January 22, 2014...

Democratic National Committee

DNC CHAIR DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ’S STATEMENT ON ROE V. WADE ANNIVERSARY

“During the 2012 elections, Republicans made restricting women’s access to health care one of their top agenda items, and the American people soundly rejected it. Then again in November, 2013, their extreme women’s health platforms were front and center and they lost, with massive gender gaps.  These issues have been argued, for decades, and the American people have made their voices heard.

”Last year, the GOP said they needed to reach out to women, but instead they’ve decided their plan is to spend more time fighting to restrict the rights of women to make their own health care choices.

”Today, on the 41st anniversary of Roe v Wade, Republicans will introduce a resolution urging their candidates to double down on these positions, and they already delayed their meeting so that RNC Chairman Priebus could rally against women’s rights – this is not what the American people are looking for.

”There are so many pressing issues facing our country that deserve our attention. But still, the GOP places blocking women’s access to health care at the top of their agenda, insisting we continue to spend time, and taxpayer dollars, refighting these battles. As long as Republicans throw obstacles in their way, Democrats will continue to stand up for women and protect access to health care.”
Republican National Committee

MEMO: DNC’s Attacks on Life and Adoption

FROM: RNC Deputy Communications Director Sarah Isgur Flores
@whignewtons
TO: Interested Parties
RE: DNC’s Attacks on Life and Adoption
 
Today in Washington, D.C., hundreds of thousands of Americans are gathering for the annual March for Life. This year’s theme is “Adoption: A Noble Decision.” The marchers have traveled from all across the country to take a stand for the value of life and to celebrate adoption.

Sadly, the Democratic National Committee sees this as an opportunity to go on the attack. It’s disheartening that they would try to disparage the marchers and misrepresent their cause.

There’s a reason Democrats try to distort Republicans’ respect for life. It’s because the majority of Americans agree with Republicans on important life-related issues. For example, a majority support protecting life after 20 weeks of pregnancy.

I understand that it is the job of the DNC and Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz to support their party’s extreme stances on abortion. But as a woman, I find it disrespectful and dishonest to invoke the cause of women’s rights to bash a rally that celebrates life and adoption.
National Right to Life Committee

“THE STATE OF ABORTION IN THE UNITED STATES”:

National Right to Life releases new report examining the current status of abortion in the United States


WASHINGTON – Today, the National Right to Life Committee (NRLC), the federation of 50 state right-to-life affiliates and more than 3,000 local chapters, issued a new report, “The State of Abortion in America.” The report summarizes key legislative developments at the state and federal levels, finds that the annual number of abortions continues to decline, and shows that a majority continue to oppose the vast majority of abortions allowed under the doctrine of Roe v. Wade.

“While the most recent data indicate a decrease in the annual number of abortions, tragically, more than 3,000 unborn children are still killed every day in the United States under the legal doctrine of Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton,” said National Right to Life President Carol Tobias. “As we observe the 41st anniversary of the twin decisions that legalized abortion in America, the pro-life movement remains committed to restoring legal protection to unborn children and providing help and support to their mothers.”

As noted in the report, on the basis of the most recent reports from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and by the Guttmacher Institute (originally founded as a special research arm of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America), National Right to Life estimates that there have been more than 56 million abortions in America since 1973, the year that the U.S. Supreme Court legalized abortion on demand.

The report also observes that after reaching an all-time high of over 1.6 million in 1990, the number of abortions performed annually in the U.S. appear to have dropped to around 1.1 million a year.

This drop in the annual number of abortions can be traced to pro-life legislative efforts at the state and federal level that have raised awareness about the humanity of the unborn child These laws not only encourage life-affirming alternatives to abortion, they seek to inform and empower women facing unexpected pregnancy.

“Laws enacted at the federal and state levels have helped immensely in reversing the disturbing trend established by Roe and Doe,” observed Tobias. “As just one example, it is estimated that the Hyde Amendment, which prevents the use of taxpayer dollars to fund abortions in the Medicaid program, has saved well over one million unborn children since it was first enacted in 1976.”

The report also discusses National Right to Life’s major legislative priority, the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. The legislation breaks new ground in the fight to protect mothers and their unborn children by acknowledging the large body of scientific evidence showing that unborn children are capable of feeling excruciating pain by at least 20 weeks after fertilization and recognizing that states have compelling interest to protect these pain-capable unborn children.

As discussed in the report, the NRLC model legislation has now been enacted in 10 states. In addition, a federal version of the bill has been introduced, and National Right to Life has declared it to be the organization’s top legislative priority for the current Congress.

“Abortion remains widely available. But after years of being told that abortion was ‘the best choice’ or ‘their only choice,’ women are learning that there are alternatives to abortion that affirm their lives and the lives of their children,” added Tobias. “The bottom line is simple: the right-to-life movement is succeeding because even after 41 years and more than 56 million abortions, the conscience of our nation knows that killing unborn children is wrong.”

The report is available from the National Right to Life Communications Department.

NARAL Pro-Choice America

NARAL PRO-CHOICE PRESIDENT ILYSE HOGUE ON ROE V. WADE AT 41 AND THE MAJORITY FOR CHOICE

On the 41st anniversary of Roe v. Wade, and as NARAL Pro-Choice America just reached 45 years of fighting for reproductive rights, President Ilyse Hogue released the following statement:

"Forty-one years ago, the Supreme Court handed down a ruling that fundamentally changed the lives of women in America. With access to legal abortion, women were finally afforded the ability to make their own decisions about how, when, and with whom they have families, without being forced into a situation that might jeopardize their lives. Abortion access is ground zero for reproductive freedom, and from there we have made strides in making contraception widely available, providing accurate information to young people through comprehensive sex education, and offering maternal health care to women who carry pregnancies to term – all elements of a public policy that gives women control over our lives and our health.

It's no wonder that public support for the rights enshrined in Roe is at a record high. Seven out of ten Americans support that landmark decision, making America solidly a pro-choice country.

Yet, from the moment Roe was handed down, an extreme minority has diligently and obsessively focused on stripping these rights from women. From the passage of the Hyde amendment in 1976, that put abortion access out of financial reach for low-income women, to just last week when those same forces went to the Supreme Court to challenge the buffer zone that keeps women safe from harassment, intimidation, and violence as they access reproductive health care clinics, a well-coordinated and well-funded anti-choice minority has used every trick in the book to put the promise of Roe out of reach for too many American women.

But the tide is turning. In 2013, the pro-choice majority in this country rallied to support champions like state Sen. Wendy Davis of Texas and defeated anti-choice hopefuls like Ken Cuccinelli in Virginia. Voters at the ballot box in Albuquerque, New Mexico defeated the first-ever municipal attempt to ban abortion. On the 41st anniversary of Roe, NARAL Pro-Choice America is committed to mobilizing all Americans who believe women should have the freedom and access to make our own decisions about our families and our futures."

Read Ilyse Hogue’s op-ed “2014: The Year the Pro-Choice Crowd Fights Back” in Politico.

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Contact:
Samantha Gordon