PrintMedia trumpets poll that shows majority want to keep Roe v Wade - whatever that is
Hot on the heels of a Pew survey that shows American under 30 largely ignorant of the significance of Roe v Wade, a new poll is out showing a majority of Americans favor the right to abortion in most or all cases.
According to the poll, 54 percent of adults say that abortion should be legal either always or most of the time, while a combined 44 percent said it should be illegal - either with or without exceptions.
That's the first time since this poll question was first asked in 2003 that a majority maintained that abortion should be legal. Previously (with just one exception in 2008), majorities said abortion should be illegal.
In addition, a whopping 70 percent of Americans oppose the Roe v. Wade decision being overturned, including 57 percent who feel strongly about this.
That's up from the 58 percent who said the decision shouldn't be overturned in 1989; the 60 percent who said this in 2002; and the 66 percent who said this in 2005.
By comparison, just 24 percent now want the Roe v. Wade decision overturned, including 21 percent who feel strongly about this position.
Much of this change, the NBC/WSJ pollsters say, is coming from African Americans, Latinos and women without college degrees -- all of whom increasingly oppose the Supreme Court decision being overturned.
No, there hasn't been a collapse of moral fiber in America. There has always been about 15% of the country ambivalent about abortion and it appears in this particular poll that they found most of them swinging the other way -- probably due to all the stupidity mouthed by the Akins and Mourdocks in the GOP. The "no exceptions" anti-abortion foes have always made up a small percentage of pro-lifers and that hasn't changed. We are nearly a 50-50 nation on abortion and that won't change anytime soon either.
The states are where the battle is being waged now and pro-choice advocates are largely on the run. That, too, will continue for the forseeable future. In short, pro-life advocates needn't worry much. The pendulum is bound to swing back.
