Graham’s Abortion Bill Creates Turmoil for GOP Midterm Strategy
(Bloomberg) -- Senator Lindsey Graham’s proposal for a nationwide abortion ban has jolted the Republican strategy for dealing with the contentious social issue and gives Democrats a new line of attack less than two months before the midterm elections.
Since the Supreme Court overturned the Roe v Wade decision legalizing abortion many Republicans have been trying to straddle the gap between the party’s core voting base -- which has long sought that outcome -- and independent voters who polls show are in favor of abortion rights and whose support will be key to the outcome in several electoral battlegrounds.
That has meant playing down the issue in many Senate campaigns and deferring to the states. At least a dozen have bans and more are considering restrictions. Graham’s proposal, announced Tuesday, for a ban after 15 weeks of pregnancy, with exceptions in cases of rape, incest or to protect a woman’s life has tossed the issue back into the congressional campaigns.
