[billreillyiii]

You have to put it in the context of the discussion. There are those who oppose abortion at ANY level - the 17%. And you're right, about 70% or so don't want unrestricted abortion. That is where most of the country is. The point I was making was two-fold: First, that those who don't vote for politicians who don't represent their 17% viewpoint are being counter productive because they defacto elect those who support unlimited abortion.

Second, the comment he was making was that there had been an erosion in the Republican party that has increased the support for abortion. But this poll shows that for the last 26 years, the numbers have remained essentially steady - no big worrisome increase.

[Ronaldus Magnus]

The point I was making was two-fold: First, that those who don't vote for politicians who don't represent their 17% viewpoint are being counter productive because they defacto elect those who support unlimited abortion.

More detailed surveys show that the middle 50% (56% in this survey) who are opposed to the complete legalization or the complete illegalization of abortion is mostly composed of people who oppose abortion except for rape, incest, or the life of the mother. This group includes many pro-life activists as well as the Evangelical Christians disparaged in this article by Karl Rove.

Second, the comment he was making was that there had been an erosion in the Republican party that has increased the support for abortion. But this poll shows that for the last 26 years, the numbers have remained essentially steady - no big worrisome increase.

This survey makes no attempt to correlate the issue to political affiliation so this statement is completely unsubstantiated. Surveys that do indicate increasing polarization about the abortion issue within both parties.

If Karl Rove wants social conservatives to vote for his candidate, he just might have to make sure his candidate actively supports the policies that are important to these social conservatives.