THE Fundamental Truth About Americans’ Views on Abortion: We’re NOT ‘Pro-Choice’
The key paragraph at William McGurn’s column in today’s Wall Street Journal (”Gallup’s Pro-Life America”):
Lydia Saad, a senior editor for Gallup, puts it this way. “On the one hand, the majority of Americans do not want to see Roe v. Wade overturned, and think abortion should be legal in at least a few circumstances. On the other, most Americans favor legal restrictions on abortion that go way beyond current law.”
Beyond that (not noted by McGurn), most Americans would not approve of abortion in a wide variety of situations. One of the best-kept secrets in America is in the following graph:
Translation: 37 years after Roe v. Wade, and despite decades of establishment media and education-system brainwashing efforts, the true definition of “pro-choice,” which is that abortion should be legal in any circumstances, remains a viewpoint that is firmly in the minority.
The average of the percentages in the 2005-2009 section (23.5%, while heading downward among the youngest demographic) is barely higher than the 1975-1979 average (20.5%). Additionally, as noted in the excerpt above, “most Americans favor legal restrictions on abortion that go way beyond current law.”
So, before weighting the age ranges (a very minor matter), 76.5% of America (100%-23.5%) is NOT “pro-choice” … and nowhere near it. (Update: Weighting the age ranges changes using this population data changes the percentages 75.4%).
This leads to McGurn’s useful closing suggestion:
So the next time you watch the pro-life community dismissed as a fringe element, ask yourself: Who’s really out of touch with the American people here?
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