10 Feb 2009 08:00 AM
Lawmakers Pursue Limited Action On Abortion, Family Planning
Antiabortion-rights groups are escalating efforts against the Freedom of Choice Act and other policies to protect abortion rights that President Obama has said he would support, the Baltimore Sun reports. "Antennas are way up in the pro-life community," according to Catholic League President Bill Donahue. As evidence, the Sun cites the massive postcard campaign against the Freedom of Choice Act -- which, if approved by Congress and signed into law, would codify Roe v. Wade and prevent states from infringing on abortion rights. The groups are organizing against FOCA, which Obama had said he would sign, despite the fact that Democrats seem inclined to hold off on pursuing the broad reproductive rights agenda feared by social conservatives.Although more abortion-rights supporters gained House and Senate positions in the 2008 elections, a large number of moderate Democrats who oppose abortion or support only incremental policy changes remain in Congress, the Sun reports. In addition, any large-scale effort to overhaul abortion policies would require expending political capital, which Obama might rather use toward promoting his economic agenda. Democratic lawmakers say that although they remain committed to overturning former President George W…

