Abortion and Electoral Politics Blog For Choice Day 2012

The theme of this year's Blog For Choice day is "What will you do to help elect pro-choice candidates in 2012?"

Dear Voters,

Are you, along with 37% of Americans represented by the latest CBS/New York Times poll in support of abortion being generally available? Or even, along with another 37% concerned that abortion remain legal under stricter limits? Then you'd better start paying attention to the position on abortion of the candidates you elect this year! There are several bills about to enter the Senate, where if they pass, will become law.

May 4, 2011 58% of the House of Representatives voted (H.R.3) to restrict federal funding of abortion, an admittedly long standing restriction.

More worrisome however was The May 26, 2011 vote by 56% of the House that banned the use of federal funds to train physicians to perform abortion, the only legal medical procedure to be treated as such (consider for example the use of federal funds to train physicians on fertility treatments to which there are also moral obligations).

Not content to limit physicians with access to training to perform abortion, in Oct 2011 58% of the House voted to preclude individuals from using federally provided funds to purchase health insurance that included abortion coverage (The President has threatened to veto this Bill should it pass the Senate as well).

There were actually 8 votes in total affecting reproductive choice. See the voting record here (and at the bottom look at all the additional attempts to limit women's access to legal abortion!)

Want to see how your legislator is doing? Check out Naral website!

Write, call, petition, picket, do whatever it takes. if you are in the one out of three women who has had an abortion in her lifetime, please make sure that abortion remains legal for women in the future.

Very best regards, and with my fingers crossed for good luck,

Feminist Professor

Bill	Status	Last Action
	H.R. 3: No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act	Passed House	May 4, 2011 5:19 PM
	S. 906: No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act	Introduced	May 5, 2011
	S. 1241: Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act	Introduced	Jun 21, 2011
	H.R. 2299: Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act	Introduced	Jun 22, 2011
	S. 165: Abortion Non-Discrimination Act of 2011	Introduced	Jan 25, 2011
	H.R. 361: Abortion Non-Discrimination Act of 2011	Introduced	Jan 20, 2011
	H.R. 217: Title X Abortion Provider Prohibition Act	Introduced	Jan 7, 2011
	H.Res. 430: Providing for consideration of the bill (H.R. 358) to amend the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to modify special rules relating to coverage of abortion services under such Act.	Passed House	Oct 13, 2011 2:06 PM
	H.R. 358: Protect Life Act	Passed House	Oct 13, 2011 7:18 PM
	S. 1374: Stop Deceptive Advertising for Women's Services Act	Introduced	Jul 14, 2011
	H.R. 593: Taxpayer Conscience Protection Act of 2011	Introduced	Feb 9, 2011
	H.R. 2543: Stop Deceptive Advertising for Women's Services Act	Introduced	Jul 14, 2011
	S. 167: Child Custody Protection Act	Introduced	Jan 25, 2011
	S. 314: Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act of 2011	Introduced	Feb 10, 2011
	H.R. 1232: To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to eliminate certain tax benefits relating to abortion.	Reported by Committee	Mar 31, 2011
	H.R. 3130: Heartbeat Informed Consent Act	Introduced	Oct 6, 2011
	S. 1005: Parental Notification and Intervention Act of 2011	Introduced	May 16, 2011
	S. 1488: Hyde Amendment Codification Act	Introduced	Aug 2, 2011
	S. 121: Pregnant Women Health and Safety Act	Introduced	Jan 25, 2011
	S. 877: Protect Life Act	Introduced	May 4, 2011
	H.R. 165: To authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make grants to nonprofit tax-exempt organizations for the purchase of ultrasound equipment to provide free examinations to pregnant women needing such services, and for other purposes.	Introduced	Jan 5, 2011
	H.R. 1319: Global Sexual and Reproductive Health Act of 2011	Introduced	Apr 1, 2011
	S. 1904: Welfare Reform Act of 2011	Introduced	Nov 17, 2011
	H.R. 1167: Welfare Reform Act of 2011	Introduced	Mar 17, 2011
	H.R. 536: Indian Healthcare Improvement Act of 2011	Introduced	Feb 8, 2011
	H.R. 2085: MARCH for Military Women Act	Introduced	Jun 2, 2011
	S. 1214: MARCH for Military Women Act	Introduced	Jun 16, 2011
	H.R. 3541: Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass Prenatal Nondiscrimination Act of 2011	Introduced	Dec 1, 2011
	S. 1484: Hyde and Related Amendments Codification Act	Introduced	Aug 2, 2011
	H.R. 364: Common Sense Health Reform Americans Actually Want Act	Introduced	Jan 20, 2011

CBS News/New York Times Poll. Jan. 12-17, 2012. (N=1,154 adults nationwide. Margin of error ± 3.
"Which of these comes closest to your view? Abortion should be generally available to those who want it. OR, Abortion should be available, but under stricter limits than it is now. OR, Abortion should not be permitted."
		Generally available	Available under stricter limits	Not permitted	Unsure
		%	%	%	%
	1/12-17/12	37	37	23	4

oopps I think I

missed my abortion anniversary

ok, just checked the dates on this blog and I didn't quite, but there we have anecdotal information about post abortion trauma. I've none, whatsoever. I don't think about my abortion really ever unless the topic comes up. I've become even more zen with the grey area in which abortion exists for me. As I wrote at the time, I know what fetal development looks like. I realize that with time and luck fetuses ex utero become people. And I'm still quite OK with having an abortion.