Pro-life view: Will vote on health care have consequences? You bet

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has made it clear she plans to use every legislative maneuver necessary to get the health-care legislation through Congress.

One of the groups that is under the most intense pressure from party leaders are pro-life democrats. While many of these pro-life members support health-care reform, they have fought to keep abortion out of the final bill.

Led by Rep. Bart Stupak of Michigan, these democrats have tried to uphold current law on federal funding of abortion, which has been in place for more than 20 years. The long-standing Hyde Amendment ensures that you, the American taxpayer, do not have to pay for someone else’s abortion.

Recently there have been indications that some members of this pro-life coalition may be crumbling under the relentless pressure. Last week, Rep. Stupak expressed his concern in these terms: “It’s almost like some right-to-life members don’t want to be bothered. They just want this over.”

While we applaud the resolve of many pro-life democrat members such as Rep. Stupak, who have stood firm under immense pressure, it is disturbing to hear that others might give up the fight at the very end when it matters most. What is at stake are the lives of 180,000 babies each and every year.

During our "Women Speak Out" tour across the Midwest and south in January, we found strong opposition to abortion funding from the constituents in all of the 19 congressional districts we visited. From Indiana to Arkansas, average Americans came out in numbers to voice a common belief: Abortion is not health care.

To more scientifically gauge the opinions of constituents of pro-life democrats, we commissioned a series of polls by the Polling Company, Inc./WomanTrend in 19 districts across the country. The survey asked a series of questions aimed at determining voters' views on federal funding of abortion and how their members' votes on abortion funding in health care will affect their own votes in November.

The results were overwhelming and confirmed what we experienced on the ground.

Seventy-four percent of constituents in Rep. Jim Oberstar’s district reject federal funding of abortion in the health-care reform bill. They agree that “abortion and abortion funding have no place in healthcare legislation,” and seventy-three percent are opposed to “using tax dollars to pay for abortions.”

These numbers reflect national pro-life trends. Voters here in Minnesota expect their congressmen to represent their values and translate their decisions into public policy.

The final question of the poll asked respondents whether they would be more or less likely to support their representative who “votes for healthcare legislation that includes federal government funding of abortion.” In Minnesota’s eighth district, 56 percent said they would be less likely to vote for Rep. Oberstar if he votes for health-care legislation that includes federal funding of abortion (36 percent would be much less likely).

The elongated and complex process of deliberation on this health-care bill challenges the principles and stamina of every member of Congress. None face a harder task than the pro-life democrats, especially those that fundamentally support health-care reform. For them, the White House and democratic leaders have removed all middle ground. In its current form, a vote for health care is a vote for federally funded abortion and against life.

We encourage all pro-life democrats to stand firm in this final push and protect the Hyde Amendment and keep abortion out of health care.

It is what their constituents strongly want and what principle demands. To do otherwise would be the ultimate betrayal of obligation and conscience.

Marjorie Dannenfelser is president of the Susan B. Anthony List, a nationwide network of over pro-life Americans dedicated to advancing, mobilizing and representing pro-life women in the political process.

Tags: daily updates, opinion, editorials, health, politics