The new Democratic Party is absolutist on abortion, believing in no restrictions on a woman getting one.
The Democrats fought for partial birth abortion, where a baby is born alive up to her head and then has her brains sucked out. They do not believe in waiting periods. They do not believe in parental consent for minors to get an abortion. And they recently fought clinic regulations all the way to the Supreme Court–and won.
This absolutist position on abortion fits in with the dominant sexual left in the Democratic Party, but a new Marist poll shows they are profoundly out of step with everyday Americans.
“The majority of Americans in favor of abortion restrictions has been consistently around 8 in 10 for the better part of a decade, said Barbara Carvalho, director of the Marist Poll. “Though self-identification as pro-life or pro-choice can vary substantially from year to year, the support for restrictions is quite stable.”
Though 51 percent of Americans say they are pro-choice, Americans overwhelmingly support substantial restrictions on abortion. Seventy-eight percent would limit abortion to the first three months of pregnancy. This includes 62 percent who self-identify as “pro-choice” and includes 85 percent of blacks and 84 percent of Latinos.
Sixty-two percent of Americans oppose taxpayer funding for abortion. This includes 65 percent of blacks and 61 percent of Latinos. Even 45 percent of those who identify as “pro-choice” oppose it, as do 61 percent of independents and 44 percent of Democrats.
Hillary Clinton and Democratic office holders are trying hard to eliminate the Hyde Amendment that forbids taxpayer-funded abortions.
Even though the Supreme Court just struck down abortion clinic regulations, 78 percent of Americans want abortion clinics to have the same standards as other outpatient surgical centers. This includes 77 percent of blacks and 82 percent of Latinos. Seventy-seven percent of women support such regulations as do 84 percent of millennials. Most pro-choicers support such regulations, too.
The other aspect of the Texas abortion clinic regulations the Supreme Court struck down was the requirement that abortionists have admitting privileges at the local hospital. However, 70 percent of Americans support the regulation, including 71 percent of women, 77 percent of millennials, and 78 percent of Latinos.
Clinton and the Democrats have also fought to force medical personnel to participate in abortions. They have vigorously opposed conscience protection for doctors and nurses who do not want anything to do with abortion. By a margin of 57 to 37, Americans believe the Democrats are wrong, that medical personnel should not be forced by the state to perform abortions.
The survey of 1,009, conducted July 5-12 by the Marist Institute for Public Opinion, shows how far out of step Hillary Clinton and the Democrats are from everyday Americas, even those from their own party, even those from ethnic and racial groups that make up their primary coalition.
The new poll comports with an annual study Marist has done for years that shows American are not overly polarized on abortion. No matter if one identifies as pro-life or pro-choice, most Americans support substantial restrictions on abortion.