Former top Trump advisor Kellyanne Conway has teamed up with the hard-core conservative anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America (SBA) to urge Republican candidates to take a strong anti-abortion stance. On Thursday in a Washington Post op-ed, Conway and SBA’s president, Marjorie Dannenfelser, attacked GOP candidates for not pushing harder against abortion, writing: “If they want to win, Republicans need to go on offense on abortion.”
The move comes just over a year after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade, allowing states to ban abortion – which many GOP-led states have done, and others have tried but failed. An anti-abortion stance proved fatal for many Republicans in the November 2022 midterms, and polls, including recent ones from Gallup show “broader support” for abortion after the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision removing it a a constitutional right.
“After rising to new heights last year, Americans’ support for legal abortion remains elevated in several long-term Gallup trends,” the iconic pollster reported in June. “A record-high 69% say abortion should generally be legal in the first three months of pregnancy.”
“Most Americans believe abortion should be legal to some degree, particularly in the first trimester,” Gallup also reported, in an article updated last month. “The majority also disagree with the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade, thus returning discretion over the legality of abortion to the states.”
In a May press release from SBA, Conway appeared to dangle support for a national ban on abortion, saying: “States’ rights are essential, but leaders in Washington also must support our first freedom, the right to life.”
Despite the majority of Americans opposing a ban on abortion, Conway and Dannenfelser are pushing forward, writing, “many Republicans have been shockingly silent.”
“One of the most harmful things Republicans said about abortion over the past year was … nothing. Many panicked and chose to bury their heads in the sand, allowing their opponents to attack them while missing an opportunity to share a positive pro-life vision for the future.”
But when Republicans talk about their support for abortion, their comments can be poorly received.
During Wednesday night’s first 2024 Republican presidential debate on Fox News, Mike Pence, a hard-core Christian conservative known for his evangelical views, spoke passionately about his anti-abortion beliefs. As he did, independents and independent-leaning voters in Milwaukee, Wisconsin watching as part of a “live-reaction dial group” hosted by Navigator Research, the “dials went negative on the former Vice President.”
As Pence declared, “I’ve been a champion for life,” the graph went down, especially among women (yellow line in video below.) As Pence continued to talk about opposing abortion, and as he announced his belief that abortion “is not a states-only issue,” the graph sunk further.
“And I promise you, as President of the United States, the American people will have a champion for life in the Oval Office,” Pence promised, forcing the graph to go even lower.
Meanwhile, on Friday, the Biden for President re-election campaign released an ad (below) pledging support for a woman’s right to choose while attacking Republicans who oppose that right and those calling for a federal ban on abortion.
“The one-minute ad, entitled ‘These Guys,’ will run for two weeks digitally through YouTube and Connected TV,” The Hill reports. “The campaign’s first post-debate ad is part of a 16-week, $25 million advertising campaign. It will run in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.”
“It includes a clip from former President Trump bragging about being behind the end of Roe v. Wade, highlights that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signed a six-week abortion ban in his state, and includes a clip from Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) saying he would sign the most conservative pro-life legislation if he were president,” The Hill adds. “It also has a line from Trump saying there has to be some form of punishment for women who receive abortions.”
At the end of the ad the voice-over says, “President Biden and Vice President Harris are determined to restore Roe v. Wade.”
Watch the videos above or at this link.
Image by Rena Schild via Shutterstock