Abortion foes rally at Supreme Court

Associated Press

WASHINGTON

Abortion opponents rallied on the National Mall and marched to the Supreme Court on Monday to mark the 38th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion.

More than three dozen lawmakers addressed the crowd during a rally to start the annual “March for Life.” The lawmakers, buoyed by Republican gains in the House in November, called for the landmark court decision to be overturned and said they would work to restrict tax dollars for abortion.

“We stand with you for life,” Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia, the second-ranking House Republican, told the marchers. “Thanks to your support last November, there’s a new majority in town.”

Cantor said the new group of Republicans in Congress is the “biggest and the most pro-life freshman class in memory.”

Just last week, Republicans in the House introduced two bills to toughen restrictions on taxpayer funding of abortions. On Monday, rally speakers also called for an end to funding of Planned Parenthood and booed when told that President Barack Obama made a statement over the weekend supporting the Roe decision.

Abortion foes, including many church groups, braved temperatures in the high 20s to hold signs such as “Life counts” and “Term limits 4 Congress not babies” during a two-hour rally before the march.

Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, issued a statement criticizing politicians who appeared at the march as out of touch with the country’s priorities.

“The 2010 elections were about jobs and the economy, yet lawmakers in Washington and across the country are proposing extreme ways to interfere in women’s personal, private decisions,” Keenan said. “How many jobs will attacking choice generate?”

A poll conducted last year by CBS News and The New York Times found 58 percent of adults say they believe the Supreme Court’s decision in Roe v. Wade was a good one, and 34 percent said it was a bad decision.