Gov. Palin on defunding Planned Parenthood (Updated)

“Taxpayer dollars should not be used to fund abortion”
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In cooperation with the Susan B. Anthony List, Sarah Palin has released the following statement regarding the defunding of Planned Parenthood:

“The greatest fiscal challenge facing our country today is our government’s dangerously unsustainable debt and its practice of deficit spending. Whatever side you’re on in the abortion debate, surely you can see that our taxpayer dollars should not be used to fund abortion at any time, let alone these hard economic times. And yet that is what has been happening with the taxpayer funding of Planned Parenthood – the nation’s largest abortion provider, which is awash in scandal after revelations of its dishonesty with the American public. They receive an average of $1 million taxpayer dollars per day; and regardless of what they had promised the public in their campaign ads, new investigative reporting shows that they are not really using our tax dollars to provide women with mammograms and other real health care services. It’s simply freeing up funds that they can then invest in their primary money-making endeavor: abortion. Planned Parenthood doesn’t really offer women who find themselves in less-than-ideal circumstances any real choice. They don’t show women that they have the power, capability, strength, and love within themselves to choose the blessing that is life. They don't explain the resources that are available to parents who want to give their child life. They don’t show them that adoption is a beautiful choice too. What they offer is not true empowerment or 'choice' or women’s health care. I join Rep. Mike Pence and others of conscience and common sense who are leading the charge to end the taxpayer funding of the nation’s largest abortion provider. We recognize that not only is our country buried under Mt. McKinley-sized debt, but that the truest measure of any society is how it treats those who are least able to defend and speak for themselves. Surely the individual resources of a generous country can come to the aid of women in need without the taxpayer funding of abortion.”

h/t: Team Sarah

Update: Via Human Events, Tony Lee comments:

Palin provided this statement on April 1, and it shows considerable political savvy. She cites Pence's strong work on the subject, links social conservatism to fiscal issues, something Huckabee has effectively spoken about in the past in Iowa and Bachmann has touched upon in recent speeches. She touches upon adoption options, and her visceral passion and concern for this issue leaps off the statement. Palin has spoken in front of many pro-life groups, including a very well received appearance before a group in Indiana. Her personal testimony, having herself walked the walked on this issue regarding her son Trig, makes her views on life issues more powerful, and will make her a formidable contender for the hearts of the pro-life electorate in the GOP primary should she choose to run in 2012.

- JP

Michael Moriarty: We are Trig!

Unless we know that, the Obama Nation wins
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At Enter Stage Right, Michael Moriarty argues that unless Roe v Wade is overturned, the American Maoists will win:

What might turn the tide? A President Sarah Palin.

[...]

We are Trig!!

The only thing standing between us and an early grave are women and men such as Sarah Palin and the very Catholic (grade school and high school) trained, Col. Allen West. Please listen to Col. West's CPAC speech here.

May they both succeed in rescuing the White House and America, freeing us from the Bipartisan, Progressive and Decidedly Pro-Abortion, New World Order.

Fervently pro-life defenders of the Second Amendment, encompassing the two major minorities of America, women and blacks, will simultaneously dumbfound the anti-American world; while, at the same time, they will rule with God's blessings by saving the lives of unborn infants.

Until Roe v Wade's infanticide ends, America and Americans will not only founder; they will drown in the ocean of hypocrisy which they created for themselves. Once Roe v Wade was decided in 1973, the Obama Nation was sure to follow. "Morning for America" will not be possible until we begin to overturn Roe v Wade.

We are Trig.

Unless we know that, the Obama Nation wins.

Trig and the right to be a human being are inextricably wedded.

Progress for a Progressive means becoming something greater and more powerful than a mere human being. It obviously means, in the face of Roe v Wade's legalized murder, becoming God.

I'd really rather be Trig. No one can play The Creator better than The Creator already has.

If you think so, I'm glad I'm not you.

[More]

- JP

Quote of the Day (August 17, 2010)

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Bluegrass Pundit:

"I am not sure [the] video ad, attacking Sarah Palin, by the pro-choice EMILY's List PAC has the desired impact. The women in the ad look ridiculous in their bear costumes and makeup. I almost fell out of my chair laughing when they started growling."

- JP

A.W.R. Hawkins: She is Palin, Hear Her Roar

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A.W.R. Hawkins comments at Human Events on Sarah Palin has taken the lead on the pro-life issue. She is building a coalition of supporters who are traditional, Christian women "who believe the womb should be a safe haven instead of an abortionist’s laboratory." They are moved by her love for her youngest son Trig, and they rally to the way she combines being pro-woman with being pro-child:

Her chief opponents—non-traditional, pro-Patsy Schroeder type women who believe it’s okay to treat the womb as a killing field—mock her every speech as vapid and express unmitigated outrage at the fact that she dares to imagine a world in which both women and children have rights to life and liberty.

Palin has snatched control of the pro-life vs. pro-death dialogue from increasingly obscure groups like the National Organization for Women (NOW) and brought it into the light.

[...]

Palin’s ongoing appeal to a substantial segment of American women doesn’t just offend leftist women but leftist men as well (I use the word “men” loosely). The usual suspects—Keith Olbermann, Chris Matthews, and Matt Lauer—either go out of their way to speak derisively of Palin or have guests on their shows to speak derisively for them.

But it’s all to no avail. For the more insulting they are toward Palin, the more protective conservatives will become of her.

It’s the same principle that’s at play behind Palin’s popularity: The more willing the left becomes to kill our unborn children for convenience sake, the more conservative women will flock to Palin’s message of keeping those children away from the abortionist’s scalpel.

Though the 2010 midterm elections will be preimarily about jobs and the economy, Sarah Palin proves that some social concerns, like the right to life, are non-negotiable.

Read the full A.W.R. Hawkins op-ed here.

h/t: roy y

- JP

Jedediah Bila: EMILY’s List Targets Palin, Bachmann

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Jedediah Bila's Sunday commentary for Human Events is about an interesting mailing her mother recently received:

So, what summer gift did the Bilas receive in the mail this year? A request for donations from EMILY’s List... a left-wing women’s organization that... recruits pro-choice Democratic female candidates...

[...]

I was amused beyond measure to see a featured timeline image of EMILY’s List founder and current Chair of the Board of Directors, Ellen Malcolm, standing beside President Bill Clinton with a big smile on her face. Now if Slick Willy doesn’t complement a pro-woman venture, I don’t know who does.

Let’s get to the meaty packet EMILY’s List put together for my Limbaugh-loving, pro-Palin, dresses-her-cats-in-Tea-Party-gear mother. The enclosed donation form leads with this: “I WILL STAND UP TO SARAH PALIN’S THREATS AND LIES.”

[...]

The EMILY’s List pamphlet reads “FOUR EMILY’S LIST CANDIDATES ARE ON PALIN’S TARGET LIST” and “Help protect the pro-choice Democratic women who are already enduring vicious Republican attacks.”

[...]

Much like many other supposedly pro-woman organizations (see NOW and Planned Parenthood for details), the priority of EMILY’s List is to foster a pro-abortion culture in America. A close second is to promote a comprehensive, far-left agenda under the guise of doing what’s best for women. Palin and Bachmann may be at the top of their figurative hit list, but don’t expect the likes of Nikki Haley or Sharron Angle to be too far behind.

Thank you to EMILY’s List for the much-needed entertainment (Mom says thanks, too!). Unfortunately, Mom won’t be able to help you guys out with some cash, but she has offered to mail you a very special photo of her and her three cats wearing “Read My Lipstick” tees (“RUSH IS RIGHT” bumper sticker included free!).

Read the full Jedediah Bila op-ed here.

- JP

Sarah Palin returns her fee to Ohio RTL after Friday's speech

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"Sarah Palin stuns the Ohio Right to Life fundraisers" is the Headline for Examiner Cynthia Graham's take on Sarah Palin's speech to Ohio Right to Life Friday night:

Sarah Palin was greeted by a standing ovation and a welcoming crowd. She joked about the criticism by the press to her propensity for writing notes on the palm of her hand. She mentioned that it was a lower cost version of a teleprompter, which elicited a roar of laughter from the crowd. Tonight she had a money sign written on her palm, but before discussing her motivation for the note, she spoke with empathy and honesty about her feelings, when she was confronted with an unexpected pregnancy and realized that she would not only have a fifth child later in life, but one who would need special care. She, like the Spielman's, admitted to an understanding that all life was sacred and each child, as well as the elderly, deserved the right to life. She warned everyone to be watchful of those in power who do not hold the view of the sanctity of life, and recounted the blessings that her son Trig has brought to her family.

The money sign on the palm of Palin's hand was a reminder that she did not want to forget to challenge the audience to dig deep in their pockets to support the Ohio Right to Life. Not only was she determined to encourage supporters, she decided to lead by example. After a last minute call home today to make sure her family was in agreement, she stunned the Ohio Right to Life, and the audience, by explaining that she was returning her speaking fee to the cause of the voiceless unborn children.

We seriously doubt, however, than anyone in the crowd was more stunned by the revelation than the media types in the audience who had to purchase a ticket like everyone else. They can't seem to write an article about her these days without mentioning her "six-figure" speaker's fee. Strange, when they report on Bill Clinton's or Al Gore's speeches, the media slugs never seem to feel the need to mention the ample speaker fees the former president and vice president get paid. 

The Columbus Dispatch's Joe Hallett wrote that the 2008 GOP vice presidential candidate's address was less about politics than it was about how her personal experiences led her to firm her commitment to the pro-life cause:

Palin was focused on energizing anti-abortion advocates, saying groups like Ohio Right to Life "absolutely transformed, changed my life" by supporting her through trying times.

"The truest measure of a society," she said, "is how we treat those who are unable to defend or speak for themselves."

Viewed as a leading contender for the 2012 GOP presidential nomination, Palin only briefly delved into politics, criticizing President Barack Obama for proposing a new version of health-care reform that would fund community groups without restricting whether they use money for abortions.

Referring to it as "Obamacare," Palin said, "For me, it was the last straw."

The focus of the article by Laura Bischoff in the Springfield Sun, however, was on the politics angle:

Officially, the Ohio Right to Life rally on Friday, March 5, was billed as a nonpartisan event, but that didn’t stop many of Sarah Palin’s 4,000 fans in attendance from wearing Palin 2012 buttons and McCain-Palin T-shirts.

Kimberly Mohr Christman, sporting a Palin 2012 button and a personally designed Palin T-shirt, called the former Alaska governor an inspirational leader for women.

“If Sarah Palin comes to Perry County, I’ll be right there to help her,” Mohr Christman said.

Palin couldn’t have found a more welcoming crowd.

“I used to not want a woman president but since Sarah came along, I do. Because of her moral convictions,” said Elizabeth Branson of Grove City.

Just before the rally, Palin attended a private $1,000 per ticket reception with donors, including Republicans such as Ohio GOP Chairman Kevin DeWine, state Sen. Jon Husted and former U.S. Sen. Mike DeWine.

Ohio Right to Life declined to disclose Palin’s speaking fee — reported to be in the neighborhood of $100,000 — but at the end of her 45-minute speech Palin promised to donate it back to the nonprofit.

Palin urged the crowd to action on abortion issues in Congress and the Statehouse, and trashed the media for criticizing her for putting notes on her hands.

- JP

Mike Adams: The irrationality of the "non-theist" bigot

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On this day when so many have rallied to support life, we couldn't resist sharing these excerpts from the latest Townhall.com column by criminology professor Mike Adams:

I work with a number of anti-Christian bigots at UNC-Wilmington. But few are as angry and irrational as Gary Faulkner – a leftist "non-theist" who shows (publicly) why sociologists are considered by so few people to be legitimate scientists.

[...]

Faulkner once wrote a Letter to the Editor... in which he criticized hunters in Alaska for shooting wolves from helicopters. This was done because packs of wolves were attacking the moose population in Alaska. Rather than seeing it as unfair to the moose - that they were attacked by packs of wolves - Faulkner sympathized with the wolves. The problem of course, is that if the wolves do not die then the moose will. If the wolf population is not controlled then people in Alaska will have nothing to eat.

Faulkner, after sympathizing with the wolf over the human, then, in the same letter, took a shot at Sarah Palin for her opposition to abortion rights. So Faulkner supports the sanctity of wolf life over the sanctity of the starving human or the unborn fetus.

The unabridged original is here.

- JP

Sarah Palin's Life-Affirming Message

- by Lisa Graas
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Today I shared some analysis of Sarah Palin in terms of life issues via email exchange with a pro-life group. I submit it below for readers.

With respect to the voice she brings to all those who are affected in life issues, the power of Sarah Palin is in the fact that she is a pro-life mom and career woman. Though she has never sought to make these things the core part of her public message, her status as both a political giant and a pro-life mom are unquestionably the reason that the 'news' most generated in our pro-abortion culture continues to center around stories that seek to cast some sort of doubt on her motherhood. Palin, just by virtue of who she is and who she can become in our society, has the power to utterly destroy the argument that women must kill their babies if they are to have any hope of greatness. Merely by being a life-affirming, successful woman, Palin exposes the lie that abortion liberates women. Even further, she has embraced a child who has a disability which prompts roughly 90% of other women in the same circumstances to reject the child. Either consciously or unconsciously, pro-abortion forces who now dominate America's public discourse, in contrast to America's true underlying culture, seek to destroy Sarah Palin because of her clear and shining example that their ideology is, in fact, oppressive to the dignity of both women and children. If the notion survives, whether through Sarah Palin herself, or perhaps in years to come in the achievements of a young lady now inspired by her, that a life-affirming woman can achieve great things, the pro-abortion argument will lie in ashes in the pages of history.

If you are experiencing a crisis pregnancy, please contact Priests for Life, Alternatives to Abortion. Oh, and this is for you, too.

- Lisa

Lisa Graas is editor of the Palin Twibe Blog and several other websites. She is a regular contributor to Texas for Sarah Palin.

SarahPalin's message energizes the pro-life movement

Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel columnist Kathy Banaszak, on "The appeal of Palin's pro-life message":

"There's just something about Sarah Palin." That's all Charlie Sykes had to say before the crowd went wild. The Milwaukee talk radio personality hosted a Wisconsin Right to Life fund-raiser headlined by the former Alaskan governor and GOP vice presidential candidate before a packed house at State Fair Expo Center on Friday.

The price of admission included a T-shirt that says it all: "America's Conservative Conscience." Palin made news recently for putting "principle over party," a radical notion for some. But "Going Rogue" (the name of her new book) is part of Palin's signature appeal to middle America. And middle America is definitely paying attention.

[...]

According to Pew Research, "millennials" are far more pro-life than the preceding generation. A May 2009 Gallup Poll reported that 51% of Americans now identify themselves as pro-life, compared to 42% as pro-choice.

[Wisconsin RTL Executive Director Barbara] Lyons and Palin understand that affecting culture starts by changing hearts and minds "one life at a time" with compassion and simple truth. In defending the defenseless, Palin is clear: "A baby is a baby regardless of the circumstances of her conception, including less than ideal and even impossible circumstances."

Read the complete Kathy Banaszak column here.

- JP

The Moderate Myth, Abortion and Sarah Palin

This is some very good stuff. We found it on a blog called Taxes, Stupidity, and Death:

The most damaging myth repeated today by so-called republicans is “We need to be more moderate, and the key to that moderation is the compromise of principle. Opposing abortion is so very provincial. Only a backward rube, or those who hate empowered women would willingly oppose a woman’s right to choose.”

[...]

There is simply no other process in this nation where a human being is deprived of life without due process of law... How can that not be antithetical to the very cornerstone of American liberty…the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness?

[...]

Standing against such an evil is not the wrong place to be. It is the only place to be.

And it makes a difference in elections. The Left knows this better than they will ever admit, and certainly better than the voices of vanilla extolling the virtues of being a moderate. Don’t believe me? I have two words for you : Sarah Palin.

Her entry into the race energized a Republican base that up to that point regarded the prospect of a McSame Presidency as the slow train to the same place that Obama is running the express to. This is not my characterization; it is the characterization of the Old Media. Abortion supporters knew this. Her very political existence underscored every lie the Left and feminists have told women for decades. She was the living proof that a woman could be successful and happy with a family. She didn’t put off having children in order to ‘work on her career’. She rose to a position of power and prominence based on merit and hard work and actually taking a stand for principles. She believed in God, and wasn’t afraid or ashamed to do so. She didn’t have an abortion when she learned she was carrying a child that did not meet society’s definition of ‘normal’, and never would. She stood by a daughter who obviously did not abide by the abstinence she stressed, and did not seek an abortion for the child, or force her to get one herself.

This made her a threat, which was recognized immediately. In a race where the winning ticket selected Sheriff Slow Joe Biden for the same slot, she was the one constantly derided as stupid by the old media and the Left. Even after the loss, she remained a lightning rod for the usual suspects, who did everything they could to bring meritless ethics complaints against her in her capacity as governor, hack her personal email accounts, continue to try to shout her down in public fora, and ridicule her in the popular media, even after their own candidate won. Why? Because they know that she still has a great deal of popular support among the Republican “extremists” precisely because of who and what she is, and the Left simply cannot afford to let her go unmolested. To do so would be disastrous for them.

Of course, one might ask if they aren’t running scared because despite their best efforts, the worm is already turning?

But you've just gotta read the unabridged original, especially the part where  blogger Blackiswhite says that moderates essentially differ from liberals only in the sense that their old steam locomotive travels more slowly, but it's on the same set of tracks and headed for the same station as is the liberals' bullet train.

- JP

Sarah Palin sets the record straight on Wisconsin event

Nutroots leftist blogs and the liberal media have been smearing Sarah Palin because cell phones and recording devices were not allowed at the Wisconsin Right To Life event Friday night at which she was the featured speaker. On her Facebook Notes page, former Governor Palin posted a note to set the record straight:

Great Wisconsin Event (And Setting the Record Straight, Again)

Great event last night in Wisconsin! It was an honor to meet great Americans who are working so hard to remind us of life's sanctity and value. I commend this fine state for its efforts to make our nation a more welcoming place for all children.

Let me set the record straight on the media's follow-up reports of the great event: Despite what CNN reported, decisions about not allowing cameras at the event were the prerogative of the sponsors of the event, and I, of course, respected their decision.

I am about to set out on my book tour, where media will no doubt join us at many spots. In the meantime, I ask our friends in the media once again: please quit making things up.

- Sarah Palin

PS: Attached is a photo from the event. You can read more about the excellent work the Wisconsin Right to Life does here.

At the Wisconsin Right to Life event on November 6, 2009

- JP

On Sarah Palin: Why the Quayling is failing

In a column for Townhall.com, The Quayling of Sarah, David R. Stokes lays out the strategy being used by the Democrats and their Vichy Republican fellow travelers to shoot down former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin's national political possibilities:

Any nine-year-old child or MSNBC show host (pardon the redundancy) understands that the idea is to vex and therefore hex Sarah Palin. The goal is to click repeatedly on her image and drag her into a folder marked either "too dumb to lead," or "demonize by caricature."

The strategy is nothing new. It has been tried in the past, without success against Ronald Reagan and more effectively against Dan Quayle (whose quixotic battle with "Murphy Brown" was doomed from the outset - he should have taken on real villians instead of television characters).  It will fail to stop Sarah Palin. She has chosen to fight not the liberal characters of "Sex in the City" but the very real evil of abortion.  And her  son Trig, born a Downs baby, is a living testament that she's not just a weekend warrior.

The problem with Quayling as a strategy goes beyond the weakness of the tactics used to implement it. It is doomed because the troops being deployed to carry it out are inferior. Against Palin, Quayling was first trotted out by intellectual elitist scribes who appear in the columns of the New York Times, The Nation, Washington Monthly and even Townhall.com and National Review. Unfortunately for the elitists, the largest audience for such fare is composed mostly of other elitist writers. No one takes Kathleen Parker seriously anymore, with the possible exception of her editors. Your average independent swing voter doesn't hang on every word written by Maureen Dowd, and most of them have never even heard of David Frum. They may remember who William F. Buckley was, but Christopher Buckley's name doesn't ring a bell.

The B-Team is now trying to do the job, but - let's face it - the audience for clowns like Chris Matthews is very small and has already bought the meme. Yet Matthews keeps on trying to sell it via television's doormat of cable news outlets, MSNBC. Like a demented Billy Mays hawking bogus OxyClean by saying "I get so excited every time I do this," Matthews gets a thrill running up his leg from ShamWow President Barack Obama. Matthews is not one of the intellectual giants of The Left, yet he rarely misses an opportunity to mock Gov. Palin's intelligence, as he did when discussing her recently signed deal to pen her memoir:

"Sarah Palin – now don’t laugh – is writing a book. Not just reading a book: writing a book. Actually, in the word of the publisher, she’s collaborating on a book. I love the way that sounds. Does that mean that she answers questions of the writer, and then the writer writes the book? I guess the reason to have someone write a book for you and claim it’s your book is you get to do a nation-wide book tour, and act the part of a, of an author yourself."

Please don't anyone tell Matthews that Ted Sorenson wrote JFK's Profiles in Courage and that Barack Obama likely had a ghost writer also, one whom many suspect is mad bomber Bill Ayers. It might chill that thrill going up Matthews' leg.

The Quayling strategy won't work when it is entrusted to such as Matthews, who has become such a cartoonish parody of himself, he is increasing being known as Tweety. Stokes writes:

"The problem is, all this will do is make her more popular with an important constituency – her core base, in fact – that could very well propel her to the Republican presidential nomination in 2012."

What Stokes is overlooking here is that the governor is in fact reaching out beyond her base.

Though she made news with her support of Miss California Carrie Prejean in the flap over gay marriage, the Palin record in Alaska was to veto a bill that would have disallowed benefits for the same-sex partners of state workers on constitutional grounds.

Yes,  she is a vocal proponent of ANWR drilling and stands with the oil companies in support of offshore drilling in Alaska's coastal waters, but the governor has been a tough bargainer with those same oil companies, and she has called for Alaska to get half its electricity from renewable sources by 2025.

Her opponents on the left see Sarah Palin as a right-wing idealogue, but she is actually a mainstream conservative with a strong libertarian streak who has enormous populist appeal. She has taken a page from Ronald Reagan's play book and has learned how to walk the fine line of principled pragmatism. The first step toward winning your battles is to choose them carefully.

Sarah Palin's strongest suit may be her uncanny political instincts. Practicing what she preaches about the sanctity of innocent human life has made her the country's leading advocate for the pro-life position at precisely the moment when America's attitudes are shifting on abortion and the gruesome procedures used to carry it out.

A recent Gallup Poll shows that a pro-life view is now held by a majority of conservatives and independents, Catholics and Protestants, men and women. There's no guarantee that the public will continue to recoil from abortion, and the issue is not the key to the White House. But it will certainly get her through the toll gate on the highway that leads to it. Gov. Palin will have to demonstrate that she will be able to clean up the train wreck Obama's policies have the economy headed for and put it back on the  right set of tracks. If Alaska can avoid the suffering the rest of the nation will be forced to endure under Obama's corporatist regime, it will greatly enhance her credibility. She will also have to show that she has a firm grasp on the issue of national security, and her arguments for a strong national missile defense are a good start.

With her unwavering stand for life and her more pragmatic stance on issues which have cooler buttons, the governor is not only bolstering her base, but she is determined to win over independent swing voters at the same time. She is going about it the right way - Reagan's way - and her political detractors, by attempting to define her as stupid, just as they tried unsuccessfully to do to Reagan, are headed for an EPIC FAIL.

Rewind: I blogged about this back in November and December. See "Here comes the Quayle meme" for some background to today's post. 

- JP

Gov. Palin comments on Obama at Notre Dame

In an e-mail to Boston Herald columnist Holly Robichaud, Gov. Sarah Palin shared her opinion on the outrage of Notre Dame inviting serial abortion facilitator Barack Obama to deliver a commencement speech and receive an honorary degree from the Catholic school:

"My favorite grandpa, Clem James Sheeran, was Catholic. Irish to the core, his favorite place (other than church) was Notre Dame. I can’t imagine what he would think as the university recognizes someone who contradicts the core values of the Catholic faith by promoting an anti-life agenda. As we learned today, our nation is more pro-life than ever before; it is a very important time to strengthen the message that every baby is created for good purpose and has the potential to make this world a better place."

Without question, the 2008 GOP vice presidential candidate has become the nation's leading advocate for the sanctity of innocent human life.

h/t: Gateway Pundit

- JP

Gov. Palin and the surge toward a pro-life view

At Governor Plain for President 2012, Bill gives Gov. Sarah Palin much of the credit for the recent shift in the attitudes of Americans toward the pro-life position:

"Governor Palin took what the [crisis pregnancy] centers were doing at the local level and brought it to the national stage. Unlike any other politician in recent history, she spoke of the pro-life position from a position of experience. She walked the walk and it showed."

He says that John McCain's decision to ask Gov. Palin to be his running mate in August of last year was the seminal event to forecast the shift:

"What other massive pro-life event happened to signal such a shift?"

I agree with Bill that the life-affirming governor is a major factor in an historic change in the hearts and minds of many Americans over the issue of abortion. I also agree with him that she was not the only factor:

"Now, nobody can suggest that Governor Palin alone was responsible for the movement in the national position on abortion. It should be noted, however, that Governor Palin was the most prominent national pro-life spokesperson during a time in which the numbers dramatically shifted to the pro-life cause more so than any time in recent history. It is then reasonable to assume that the governor did have at least something to do with those numbers."

Unfortunately, the poll did not include several questions designed to measure the reasons for the changes in attitude, but the pollsters were not expecting any such change. Perhaps some future polls can attempt to find the causes of the shift once it may be determined that the change is indeed the beginning of a major and lasting trend toward the pro-life view, as advocates for life so earnestly hope it is. 

There are other players who deserve some credit. Although I am not one of his biggest fans, former Gov. Mike Huckabee of Arkansas must be acknowledged for landing a weekend television talk show on the Fox News Channel, the highest-rated cable news outlet, and using it to speak rather eloquently for the pro-life cause. Radio talk show hosts such as Laura Ingraham, the election behind them, had more time to devote to promoting life, which they did. Michael Steele became the Chairman of the RNC, and he used the increased media attention to him to make compelling arguments for life. Many pro-Life organizations such as the Susan B. Anthony List ramped up their tireless pro-life efforts. Even Barack Obama, the most pro-abortion U.S. president in history, unwittingly advanced the cause by pursuing such an aggressive agenda against the cause of life for all of the innocent unborn that many who had not been part of the movement for life prior to his election recoiled in horror.

Until we have empirical evidence, however, we can only speculate as to what degree Gov. Sarah Palin influenced her fellow American citizens to be more sympathetic to the pro-life view. There can be no argument, however, that she has not taken the leading role on the national stage in the dramatic struggle for the cause of life.

- JP

Obama corporatism: Too much too soon

The results of new independent polls from credible opinion research houses indicate that Americans, concerned about Obama's radical spending and abortion policies, appear to be moving to the right. The usual obligatory disclaimers: It's only four polls. We need to see more data before we can identify any trends, if they do indeed exist. But there is reason for conservatives and right-leaning independents to find encouragement here.

The first survey, a Fox News poll conducted by Opinion Dynamics (PDF), found that fully 78 percent of Americans believe that when President Obama says "investment" it means spending their tax dollars, not saving them.

A majority (54 percent) of voters think Obama and the Democrats propose too much of an increase in spending, while only 6 percent want them to spend more. 35 percent say federal spending is "about right."

By party affiliation, 85 percent of Republicans and 61 percent of independents think the increase in spending under the Obama administration is too high, while 61 percent of Democrats say what the president proposes to spend is about right.

60 percent of those surveyed say the president's proposed cuts in government waste don't go far enough, including 84 percent of Republicans, 66 percent of independents and 38 percent of Democrats.

Given Obama's criticism of the Bush administration deficits during the presidential campaign, some 28 percent of Americans say they are surprised Obama is increasing the nation's deficit. More than twice as many -- 68 percent -- are not surprised.

The poll's most significant finding, however, has to do with the involvement of the federal government in the lives of American citizens, and it strongly suggests that Colin Powell has grossly misinterpreted the attitudes of the American people on this issue:

"Former Secretary of State Colin Powell recently made news by saying that Americans 'want more government in their life.' Americans disagree. Most -- 71 percent -- say they want less government in their life. A much smaller number (17 percent) fall in the category described by Powell."

Another finding by Opinion Dynamics:

"By 55 percent to 33 percent Americans think the federal government's increased involvement in U.S. auto companies is a bad thing, which is higher than the number that thinks the government's involvement in the U.S. financial industry is bad (47 percent bad thing, 38 percent good thing)."

The real stunner, however, is found in the results of another survey. For the first time since the Gallup Poll began asking the question in 1995, a majority of adult Americans have identified themselves as pro-life. In addition, fewer of them think abortion should be legal under any circumstances. 51 percent of Americans now call themselves "pro-life" and 42 percent "pro-choice":

"The new results, obtained from Gallup's annual Values and Beliefs survey, represent a significant shift from a year ago, when 50 percent were pro-choice and 44 percent pro-life. Prior to now, the highest percentage identifying as pro-life was 46 percent, in both August 2001 and May 2002."

"The May 2009 survey documents comparable changes in public views about the legality of abortion. In answer to a question providing three options for the extent to which abortion should be legal, about as many Americans now say the procedure should be illegal in all circumstances (23 percent) as say it should be legal under any circumstances (22 percent). This contrasts with the last four years, when Gallup found a strong tilt of public attitudes in favor of unrestricted abortion."

This dramatic shift toward the pro-life position is not an "outlier" - it has been confirmed by two other studies. Gallup asked the same abortion questions that are in its Gallup Values and Beliefs survey on a separate Gallup daily tracking poll from May 12-13, with nearly identical results. Gallup also points out that a Pew Research Poll also indicates a significant change in Americans' attitudes about abortion:

"...a recent national survey by the Pew Research Center recorded an eight percentage-point decline since last August in those saying abortion should be legal in all or most cases, from 54 percent to 46 percent. The percentage saying abortion should be legal in only a few or no cases increased from 41 percent to 44 percent over the same period. As a result, support for the two broad positions is now about even, sharply different from most polling on this question since 1995, when the majority has typically favored legality."

The shift in abortion views, when measured by party affiliation, can be accounted for by Republicans and independents who lean Republican, among whom identification as "pro-life" increased by fully 10 points over the past year, up from 60 percent to 70 percent. while the  views of Democrats and Democrat-leaners has essentially remained static.

When examined by ideology, the increase in pro-life sentiment is found among those who consider themselves conservatives and moderates. Gallup found no change in the abortion views of political liberals.

A year ago, Gallup found that more women considered themselves to be pro-choice than pro-life, by 50 percent to 43 percent. 49 percent of men last year identified as pro-choice and 46 percent as pro-life. Today, because of an increase in pro-life sentiment among both demographics, according to Gallup, both women and men are more likely to identify themselves as pro-life:

Men and women have been evenly divided on the issue in previous years; however, this is the first time in nine years of Gallup Values surveys that significantly more men and women are pro-life than pro-choice.

So what does all this polling mean? Without more specific data, one cannot say with 100 per cent assurance, but the Fox/Opinion Dynamic results regarding spending and the involvement of government in the lives of Americans and businesses suggest that Obama and the Democrats are over-reaching. They are transforming the nation's economic system into a form of corporatism that is scaring the daylights out of many moderates and conservatives. Obama surprised both groups. The former are suffering from buyers remorse in the extreme, most of them having voted for Obama. Most of the latter were expecting a different form of collectivism from Obama, i.e., socialism.

Explaining the change in attitudes about abortion is more problematic. Gallup says it is possible that Obama's abortion policies may be driving Republicans and independents away from the pro-choice position, while Democrats generally support everything Obama is doing as president.

Some early reaction to the Gallup Polls reported by Politico includes comments from some  Republicans who have had high profiles in the media and affirmed their support for life in front of the national audience:

"This is promising news," Gov. Sarah Palin (R-Alaska) told Politico through a spokeswoman. "Every life is precious and has purpose."

[...]

"The American people are saying loud and clear they want leaders who believe in the sanctity of life and cherish it even at the earliest stage," former Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee said in a statement to Politico.

"Over the last few months, Republicans have been trying to rebrand themselves," he said. "This is a clear indication that we do not need to rebrand by moving left toward the middle but instead remain steadfast in our commitment to human life."

[...]

Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the Susan B. Anthony List, agreed with Huckabee, saying the poll shows "that those who blame pro-lifers first when the party loses need to throw out that idea."

"For the Republican Party, it's the independents and the moderate Republicans that are trending pro-life," she said.

Obama "has gone way too far in a direction that people don't want to go on this issue," added Dannenfelser. "Obama's policies and his nominees are running in the exact opposite direction of the polls.

[...]

Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele told Politico through a spokeswoman that "we have a long way to go, but will continue to work to promote pro-life values."

Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, to no one's surprise, disagrees:

"It's one poll, and I look at more than just one poll."

Actually, it is three polls, two by Gallup and one by Pew, that indicate a dramatic shift in the attitudes of Americans about abortion. Ms Keenan may whistle through the graveyard (grim metaphor intentional) all she wants, but it is significant that for the first time since 1995, more Americans take the pro-life position than the pro-abortion one.

- JP

Gov. Palin encouraged by Gallup Poll results

A new Gallup Poll shows that the pro-life movement has good cause for celebration today. For the first time, a majority of Americans self-identify as "pro-life."

According to Politico's Andy Barr, the Gallup results are encouraging to life-affirming activists who who seen the election of a pro-abortion president who is almost certain to choose a pro-abortion nominee to fill the upcoming vacancy or retiring Supreme Court justice David Souter. 

"This is promising news," Gov. Sarah Palin (R-Alaska) told Politico through a spokeswoman. "Every life is precious and has purpose."

Gallup reports that its survey found that the percentage of Americans who identify as "pro-life" jumped from 44 percent to 51 percent in the last year. Those who identify as "pro-choice" dropped from 50 percent to 42 percent over the same period of time. 

- JP

Ruth Marcus, meet Mary Ann Kreitzer

In her latest commentary, Mary Ann Kreitzer answers Ruth Marcus' back-of-the-hand compliment over Gov. Palin's remarks to Thursday night's major Indiana right to life event.

An excerpt:

Marcus' words link her to the early screeching, bra-burning feminists who described motherhood as slavery and demeaned women who chose it over careers. But why does she hate Palin so much whom she attacked relentlessly during the presidential campaign? Palin chose career, balancing it with family. Ah, but she breaks the biggest rule of radical feminism. She doesn't promote or shill for abortion. And so her words must be twisted to make it appear that she is, indeed, "pro-choice," but a hypocrite who wishes to deny the same choice to others.

In "Palin's Personal Choice" Marcus says Palin "made her eloquent case for choice at a right-to-life fundraising dinner." How did Palin suddenly switch from pro-lifer to pro-choicer on Marcus' balance sheet? She expressed her fears and her doubts and, yes, the temptation to abort. As a Catholic and a sinner I know just what Sarah Palin was talking about. I too have been tempted to do evil out of self-interest, and an immoral law (as it did with slavery) makes evil choices easier to justify. Welcome to the human condition!

But distorting reality is necessary to demonize the opposition. So after quoting Palin's description of her doubts and "thought process," Marcus plays the gotcha game...

Highly recommended reading.

Update: Now Ms. Marcus, please meet Ramesh Ponnuru.

- JP

Quote of the Day (April 21, 2009)

From John Smeaton, director of the UK's Society for the Protection of Unborn Children:

"Sarah Palin is not 'pro-choice', she's a human being."

Honorable Mention: from Brian Flarherty at Dracut Musings:

"I love how the media says Sarah Palin is a joke but hangs on every word of the 24 year old vapid daughter of the worst presidential candidate since George McGovern."

- JP

At RTL event, Palin criticizes Obama on abortion

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin criticized President Barack Obama's positions on abortion and embryonic stem cell research in a speech delivered to the Vanderburgh County Right to Life's annual banquet tonight in Evansville, Ind.

She says deciding when babies get human rights isn't above her pay grade - a reference to Obama's response to a question from the Rev. Rick Warren last year. Obama said such questions were above his pay grade.

Local reports from Evansville television station WTVW.

Update 1: FNC's Special Report "goes inside" Gov. Palin's speech Friday, 5:00 P.M. CST.

Update 2: KTUU has raw audio of an interview with Gov. Palin in Alaska, recorded just before she left the state for Indiana.

Update 3: Kristofer summed up Gov. Palin's speech rather well at Race 4 2008:

"What a speech and what charisma! Watch out Barack!"

- JP