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The abortion debate is between “pro-choice” and “pro-life.” Pro-choice is the stance that women should legally have autonomy in the choices they make with their bodies, which includes the reproductive system and therefore includes the option to terminate a pregnancy through abortion. And pro-life is the stance that there is an overarching need to preserve human life, which they believe starts at conception, and abortion would infringe on that preservation and the rights set forth in the Fourteenth Amendment.
In 1973, in the historic Roe v. Wade case, the Supreme Court ruled that a state law in Texas, which banned abortions with the only exception being when the mother’s life was at risk, was unconstitutional. This was based off the idea that the ability to terminate one’s pregnancy was in line with one’s constitutional rights to liberty and privacy. This legalized abortion for most women.
Around the same time, the Supreme Court also ruled over the Doe v. Bolton case from Georgia. Much like the Roe v. Wade case, in Doe v. Bolton the Supreme Court ruled the majority of the state law prohibiting abortion as unconstitutional. Another important aspect of this case was its addition to the allowance of abortion after viability if in dire circumstances. Viability refers to the point in which a fetus is able to sustain life outside the womb. This second ruling caused many states to get rid of their laws preventing abortion.
A few years later, in 1976, Congressman Henry Hyde was the chief sponsor of the Hyde Amendment. This amendment changed federal funding for Medicaid to no longer cover abortion unless the pregnancy endangered the woman’s life or resulted from rape or incest.
In 1992, the Supreme Court oversaw the Casey v. Planned Parenthood case and ruled to uphold the basis of Roe v. Wade decision to legalize abortion in all states.
Another aspect of the abortion debate is partial-birth abortion. This is also known as intact dilation and extraction (IDX), which is an abortion procedure that takes place late in the second trimester. Congress passed the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 into a law which made performing the procedure a criminal act that could result in jail time. The Act was upheld in the Supreme Court during Gonzales v. Carhart.
President George W. Bush was a pro-life supporter. His stance was to prevent abortions by promoting adoption and other facilities for those in need of support. Before leaving his second term as president he created “National Sanctity of Human Life Day” to support his belief that the government must protect the lives of innocents. During his presidency President Bush made a declaration to prevent embryonic stem cell research to be conducted using federal funds.
President Obama is a supporter of pro-choice. On the 39th anniversary of Roe v. Wade on January 22, 2012, President Obama said, “While this is a sensitive and often divisive issue-- no matter what our views, we must stay in our determination to prevent unintended pregnancies, support pregnant woman and mothers, reduce the need for abortion, encourage healthy relationships, and promote adoption.”
Today there is still a strong divide between pro-life and pro-choice which strongly correlates to the divide between Republicans and Democrats. While both of these groups maintain their differing opinions on their view of abortion, they both emphasize preventing abortions as much as possible through providing resources and programs that either prevent unwanted pregnancy or assist through pregnancy.