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Theres abipartisanconsensus that the Democrats' "stunning turnaround" in recent polls has a lot to do with abortion. Pewfoundthat from March to August the percentage who said abortion was "very important" for the 2022 elections went from 43% to 56%. And during that time 538recordedRepublicans going from the 2.1% lead in the genetic ballot over Democrats to a 0.9% deficit.

Abortion rights activists were ready to pounce as soon asDobbswas decided. Much aswhat happened in Ireland when abortion activists there defeated their pro-life constitution, U.S. abortion activists have cynically seized on very rare (though admittedly difficult) cases involving the life and health of pregnant women trying to paint a picture of massive numbers of women dying of laws protecting prenatal justice.

But Irish law defended prenatal children as legal persons for decades, and they still hadbetter health outcomes for women than their abortion-permissive neighbor, England.Polandhas the lowest rate of maternal mortality in all of Europe despite having some of the strictest laws against abortion.Chileactually saw their maternal health numbersimproveafter they banned most abortions.

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If U.S. pro-lifers had been ready for the activist onslaught, we could have been creating a (true) counter-narrative about the fact that pro-life hospitals andOB/GYNs are 100% committed to saving the lives of women.

Graffiti and red paint found at Washington, DCs Capitol Hill Pregnancy Center. (Capitol Hill Pregnancy Center) (Capitol Hill Pregnancy Center)

But not all the blame lies with activists. It is difficult to create a national counter-narrative, frankly, when the supposedly pro-life national party is running scared.

Much attention was focused on the House special election for New Yorks 19thDistrict. Asreported by Axios, the Democrat centered his campaign on abortion while the Republican ran away from the issue, focusing on the economy and crime. The Democrat won by the same margin Biden carried the district (two points) in 2020 just the latest evidence that the expected red wave may be turning into a trickle.

But what if Republicans in New York focused on the fact that the Empire State, after the passage of the Reproductive Health Act, is a haven for some of the worst abortion extremism in the entire world? What if Republicans all over the United States had a coherent campaign focusing on the fact that the Democratic Party itself stands for this same kind of extremism?

Back in 2016 I wrote ajoint op-edin theLos Angeles Timesshowing that the partys position was unequivocal support for abortion, with a pledge to repeal all state and federal laws restricting it. They even insisted that abortion was "core to womens, mens, and young peoples health and wellbeing." They removed protections for religious freedom and insisted pro-lifers should have to pay for abortions with our tax dollars.

This position is about the most unpopular position one could take on almost any issue.

Gallupconsistently finds, for instance, that about 8-13% of Americans want no legal restrictions on abortion after 24 weeks. To put this into perspective, theworst approval rating for a presidentbelonged to Harry Truman: 22%.

The Democratic position on abortion isalmost twiceas unpopular as the most unpopular president in our history. If you cant run against the Democrats on abortion, then you cant run against them on anything.

Here are just a handful of suggestions for the GOP to make the easy case against their opponents:

The Democratic position on abortion isalmost twiceas unpopular as the most unpopular president in our history.

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The GOP has been feckless on abortion for decades. Who could forget, for instance,Republican Timothy Murphy trying to coerce his mistress into having an abortion despite his being a member of the congressional pro-life caucus! Pro-lifers, therefore, have good reason to be skeptical about selling out to a party for short-term political gain especially when we have clear incentives to play the long game in order to win the political culture.

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This fact comes a warning for a cowardly GOP: if you keep this up, pro-lifers will either stay home or turn elsewhere in November. You must prove that you will publicly and confidentially defend a pro-life positionnot just on social media or in fundraising mailers but in a post-Dobbs moment when your position actually matters in the real world.

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If Republicans can't run against Democrats on abortion, they can't run against them on anything - Fox News