Four years ago, we made great strides as pro-life democrats when the Democratic National Committee allowed us to unveil our proposal to reduce abortion at its headquarters in Washington, DC. It was a signal that pro-life democrats were no longer on the outside of the Party. It opened a new era of inclusion and cooperation between those of us who disagreed with the Party platform on the issue of abortion and pro-choice Democrats who wanted to find commonly supported measures to lower the number of abortions.
Today, we are hearing more and more Americans in both parties and on all points of the political spectrum call for common ground solutions to this most divisive issue that has plagued our nation for 36 years. President Obama consistently spoke about the need to address the root causes of abortion in speeches starting in the campaign season. More recently he charged his Office of Community and Faith Based Initiatives and the White House Council on Women and Girls to come up with a common ground plan for America. His leadership on this issue has both encouraged and inspired Democrats For Life of America to keep calling for progress on this issue.
We are proud to stand with the President, groups and individuals who are truly committed to finding areas of agreement so we can work together to dramatically reduce the number of women seeking abortion services and help women with crisis pregnancies who wish to carry to term. Unfortunately there are still some who will want to set roadblocks before common-ground proposals in order to maintain a perceived political advantage by perpetuating the stale argument over who is right and wrong on the issue of abortion.
We are confident that America will continue to rally behind those of us committed to finding common ground. Recent polling released by Gallup indicated that only a small percentage, 23 percent of respondents believe that abortion should be illegal in all circumstances and an near equally small percentage, 22 percent, believe abortion should be legal under any circumstance.
It is reasonable to discern that we may never find agreement among the small percentage of advocates that cling to the purist position on their side of the abortion debate. But DFLA is committed to standing up to those who are intransigent and those who are all too ready to impede any cooperative attempt.
The Pregnant Women Support Act is the first truly bi-partisan bill that will do just that. It has support from both pro-life activists, including Doug Kmiec and pro-choice advocates, including, Pro-Choice Scholar Activist Susan Kelley, as well as pro-choice elected officials including Congressman Artur Davis (D-AL) and pro-life elected officials like Congressman Lincoln Davis (D-TN) and Senator Bob Casey (D-PA).
PWSA addresses areas of agreement such as prohibiting health insurance companies from denying pregnant women coverage because they consider her pregnancy a pre-existing condition and providing more support for violence against pregnant women who are often forced by a boyfriend or husband to undergo an abortion because the men want to avoid the financial responsibility.
The PWSA provide grants to colleges and universities to establish and operate pregnant and parenting student service offices so women do not have to choose between having a baby or completing their education. The office will focus on ensuring that women have a safe place to bring their child while they complete their education. The office would also advocate for maternity coverage in student health plans, and provide family housing, child care, flexible schedules, education, provisions of maternity and baby clothing and post-partum counseling and support, and referrals for prenatal care, delivery, infant and foster care or adoption.
PWSA increases support for WIC. Only 1 in 10 people eligible for the program participate for several reasons including: difficulty in signing up or access to a store that accepts the electronic benefit. Stores in mostly rural and inner city areas are unable to process WIC benefits because they don't have the equipment. Some women are kicked off for making a minor mistake in the application process.
Regardless of where one stands on the abortion issue, DFLA extends an olive branch to any and all who are willing to work with us to provide needed support to women who wish to carry their pregnancies to term. We believe that common ground isn't only possible, it is imminent. We recognize that people on both sides of the abortion debate may have concerns about certain provisions of the PWSA and believe that these hamper its common ground potential; such concerns include coverage for unborn children under SCHIP, funding "life support centers" or the overall cost of the bill. However, we are ready to try to address these concerns with any and all who are willing to put progress over partisanship and work toward a common ground solution.
