Polls show Americans support funding Planned Parenthood while passing a 20-week abortion ban
Eight in 10 Americans oppose cutting federal funding to Planned Parenthood (PP) if the money is used for non-abortion services like breast cancer screening, new Quinnipiac poll results published Friday show; and a smaller majority, 62 percent, supports preserving funding when the money's use is not specified. The same survey found that 58 percent of Americans support some abortion restrictions, while 28 percent say it should be legal in all cases and 9 percent want it to be illegal always. Some 70 percent of respondents, including 43 percent of self-identified Republicans, said they agree with the landmark 1973 Supreme Court case, Roe v. Wade.
However, a Marist poll also released this week in advance of the March for Life in Washington paints a more complex picture. That survey found nearly a quarter of those who identify as "pro-life" or "pro-choice" sometimes think the other label applies. Only 35 percent said they support using tax dollars to pay for abortions (a question asked without reference to PP specifically), while 61 percent said they oppose it. Strikingly, the Marist poll also found 59 percent of Americans would support "banning abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy except to save the life of the mother," a proposal President Trump has said he would sign into law.
The Marist survey was funded by the Knights of Columbus, a Catholic organization, and has a 1.9 percent margin of error. The Quinnipiac margin of error is 2.8 percent.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Bonnie Kristian was a deputy editor and acting editor-in-chief of TheWeek.com. She is a columnist at Christianity Today and author of Untrustworthy: The Knowledge Crisis Breaking Our Brains, Polluting Our Politics, and Corrupting Christian Community (forthcoming 2022) and A Flexible Faith: Rethinking What It Means to Follow Jesus Today (2018). Her writing has also appeared at Time Magazine, CNN, USA Today, Newsweek, the Los Angeles Times, and The American Conservative, among other outlets.
-
7 magnificent hotels to visit before the summer crowds descend
The Week Recommends Have beach time in the Dominican Republic or a spa day in Saint-Tropez
By Catherine Garcia, The Week US Published
-
The Week contest: Sheep spray
Puzzles and Quizzes
By The Week US Published
-
The bird flu fight is faltering
Talking Points Are pandemic lessons going unheeded?
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Ukraine cheers House approval of military aid
Speed Read Following a lengthy struggle, the House has approved $95 billion in aid for Ukraine and Israel
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Poland, Germany nab alleged anti-Ukraine spies
Speed Read A man was arrested over a supposed Russian plot to kill Ukrainian President Zelenskyy
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Israel hits Iran with retaliatory airstrike
Speed Read The attack comes after Iran's drone and missile barrage last weekend
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Peter Murrell: Sturgeon's husband charged over SNP 'embezzlement' claims
Speed Read SNP expresses 'shock' as former chief executive rearrested in long-running investigation into claims of mishandled campaign funds
By Arion McNicoll, The Week UK Published
-
Mark Menzies: Tories investigate MP after 'bad people' cash claims
Speed Read Fylde MP will sit as an independent while party looks into allegations he misused campaign funds on medical expenses and blackmail pay-out
By Arion McNicoll, The Week UK Published
-
Why Johnson won't just pass Ukraine aid
Speed Read The House Speaker could have sent $60 billion in military aid to Ukraine — but it would have split his caucus
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Sudan on brink of collapse after a year of war
Speed Read 18 million people face famine as the country continues its bloody downward spiral
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump's first criminal trial starts with jury picks
Speed Read The former president faces charges related to hush money payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published