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Susan B. Anthony List

http://www.sba-list.org

Key Leaders

Marjorie Dannenfelser is the President and “Chairman of the Board” at the Susan B. Anthony List (SBA List). She became President in 2006 Chairman thereafter.[1] She is often quoted as a spokesperson for the organization. She previously worked on the Congressional Pro-Life Caucus in Washington, DC. In support of the nomination of Samuel Alito to the US Supreme Court in 2006, Dannenfelser plugged the familiar trope of the “activist judge,” saying:

 

Liberal groups oppose Judge Alito because he is not the type of activist judge that they have long depended on to implement their liberal policies, such as… ignoring the rights of parents of minors to be informed about their child's abortion and abolishing the laws which protect children from Internet pornography.[2]

 

 

Jane Abraham became president of the SBA list in 1997.[3] She is the wife of former Michigan Senator and current Secretary of the US Dept. of Energy Spencer Abraham. She also has her own political career. Mrs. Abraham was Political Director and then Executive Director of the Michigan Republican Party and then moved to Washington, DC to work for the Republican National Committee after George H. W. Bush was elected as President.[4] Abraham used this background to connect to candidates for the SBA List PAC to fund and was president until 2006. She remained Chairman of the Board until she was replaced by Dannenfelser[5]. She is currently a co-chair of the Michigan Republican Party.

 

Emily Buchanan is currently the Executive Director of the SBA list. She has worked at a political consulting firm called the Carlyle Gregory Group, and for Delegate Bob Dell of Virginia during both his campaign and his legislative term.


[1]Dannenfelser, Marjorie. "The Times They Are a-Changin'; Don't look now, but the pro-life movement is winning." The Weekly Standard (May 1, 2006): NA. General OneFile. Gale. San Francisco Public Library. Jan. 2008.

[2]"Susan B. Anthony List Speaks Out in Support of Judge Alito." US Newswire (Jan 5, 2006): NA. General OneFile. Gale. San Francisco Public Library. 9 Jan. 2008."

[3]Wagner, David. "Not just any senatorial wife, Abraham leads pro-life PAC." Insight on the News 13.n20 (June 2, 1997): 16(3). General OneFile. Gale. San Francisco Public Library. 30 Jan. 2008.

[4]Ibid.

[5]:"Susan B. Anthony List Speaks Out in Support of Judge Alito." US Newswire (Jan 5, 2006): NA. General OneFile. Gale. San Francisco Public Library. Jan. 2008.

 

Organizational Background and Activities

Founded in 1993 as a response to EMILY’s list (a PAC that raises early money for pro-choice candidates) and the election of many pro-choice women into congress in 1992, the Susan B. Anthony List (SBA List) was created to support female anti-choice candidates. In 1997, when Jane Abraham took the helm, the 501(c)(4) charity with affiliated PAC was formed. The original strategy of the SBA List was to ask members to write checks directly to the candidate’s campaign; the PAC would then bundle checks for each campaign and send them off.

As of 1997, the PAC is responsible for distributing camaign funds, while the charity funds and hosts organizing activities. Amongst these activities are the training of potential anti-choice candidates in fundraising and campaigning, running advocacy campaigns to push for anti-choice legislation, and trying to change public opinion about abortion and reproductive health rights through media campaigns and “voter education”. The PAC emphasizes electing “pro-life women” as its main goal, but also frequently supports anti-choice male candidates if they are challenging a pro-choice incumbant. The PAC announces its endorsements before each election and solicits donations.

The SBA list claims that it's membership has grown to 25 times its original size; it also lists the successes of their endorsed candidates as part of their growth as an organization.

As evidenced by the SBA List’s leadership, the group is not composed of religious leaders, but rather of political insiders who wish to push the idea that anti-choice women should be in government. The SBA List asserts that female pro-choice politicians do not reflect the opinions of ordinary women in the US. They cite many polls and surveys to back up this claim, stating that answers to questions about whether a respondent would consider an abortion for herself reflect “pro-life” sentiment, even if the respondents do not accept the pro-life label for themselves[6].

[6]Wagner, David. "Not just any senatorial wife, Abraham leads pro-life PAC." Insight on the News 13.n20 (June 2, 1997): 16(3). General OneFile. Gale. San Francisco Public Library. 30 Jan. 2008.


Address

1800 North Kent Street, Suite 1070

Arlington, VA 22209


Funding and Budget

The Susan B. Anthony List (SBA List) 501(c)(4) charity filed a form 990 with the IRS in 2005 listing the following figures:

Total contributions from the public: $2,096,929.

Other revenue: $39,636.

Total expenses: $2,170,138.

End of Year Total Assests: $302,179.

 

In 2002, the SBA List and associated PAC listed a $2.5 million budget total.[7]

 

[7]"Susan B. Anthony List Candidate Fund Celebrates Big Wins for Pro-Life Women Candidates; 'Percentage of Pro-Life Women in Congress Jumped 71% in Last Night's Elections and FIRST Pro-Life Woman Elected to the Senate'." PR Newswire ( 6, 2002): DCW04006112002. General OneFile. Gale. San Francisco Public Library. 9 Jan. 2008

 

 


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