Why the Left Is Losing on Abortion

The Daily

The New York Times

Daily News, News

4.4 • 102.8K Ratings

🗓️ 12 October 2020

⏱️ 35 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Most Americans say that abortion should be legal with some restrictions, but President Trump’s nominee for the Supreme Court, Amy Coney Barrett, signed a statement in a 2006 newspaper advertisement opposing “abortion on demand.” Her accession would bolster a conservative majority among the justices. How did that happen? According to Ilyse Hogue, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, abortion rights advocates have for too long taken Roe v. Wade for granted. Ms. Hogue describes how Republican attacks on abortion were not countered forcefully enough. “I think most people in elected positions had been taught for a long time to sort of ‘check the box’ on being what we would call pro-choice and then move on,” she said. Guest: Ilyse Hogue, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily Background reading: The 2006 statement signed by Amy Coney Barrett appears to be the most direct evidence of her personal views, ones she has vowed to set aside on the bench.The issue of abortion contains political risks for both Democrats and Republicans, even as it energizes parts of their bases.

Transcript

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0:00.0	From The New York Times, I'm Michael Barrow. This is The Daily.
0:11.0	As the confirmation hearings for Amy Coney Barrett begin this week,
0:15.0	much has been made of the decades-long battle that got the right to this moment,
0:20.0	with a conservative majority cemented on the court
0:24.0	and a nominee who openly opposes abortion.
0:28.0	Less attention has been paid to how the left lost that battle.
0:35.0	Today, a conversation with Elise Hogue, president of Neyrol Prochoice America.
0:44.0	It's Monday, October 12th.
0:51.0	Good morning, Michael. I'm Elise. How are you?
0:53.0	I'm supposed to be the one saying, hello, thank you.
0:59.0	Elise, the reason we want to talk to you is because we are at this very strange moment
1:04.0	in the United States. The majority of Americans support the right to abortion
1:09.0	and support Roe v Wade.
1:12.0	Yet, the Senate is about to confirm and openly anti-abortion justice.
1:17.0	The third conservative justice in the past four years,
1:21.0	and that right to abortion very much seems in jeopardy.
1:25.0	And your group, Neyrol Prochoice America, exists to protect abortion rights.
1:30.0	So it seems you're on the cusp of a pretty historic defeat,
1:34.0	despite having public opinion on your side.
1:36.0	Does that all feel kind of like an accurate characterization of where things are?
1:43.0	Yeah, Michael, I would say that's pretty accurate
1:46.0	and not to take the group that I lead out of it,
	...

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