Plank
Roe v. Wade Is More Popular Than Ever—A Fact the Supreme Court Is Unlikely to Ignore
On this fortieth anniversary of the Supreme Court decision in the abortion case, Roe v. Wade, a NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll found 70 percent of U.S. adults support the decision, compared to 58 percent in 1989. That marks an all-time high. 2012 saw a huge number of abortion restrictions passed through state legislatures (though significantly less than 2011). But the feminist movement’s main victories last year came on the national stage: not just the defeats of Senate wannabes Todd Akin and Richard Mourdock, but also the election of President Obama himself. Fifty-five percent of women voted for Obama, making him the first president in history unambiguously elected by women when men wanted the other guy. (Bill Clinton won women in 1996, but his loss among men was within the margin of error of exit polls.)The surge of support for Roe in the NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll reveals that the core groups in the liberal coalition that elected Obama have a surplus to offer others. The pollsters found the new support for abortion rights, long seen as the effete preoccupation of middle class white women, was concentrated among African Americans, Latinos and women without college degrees. These highly religious groups tasted political power as the Obama campaign scrambled for re-election. Now the polls show them supporting a new cause: women’s right to abortion. And so a virtuous cycle begins. READ MORE >>
The Filibuster and "The Fermata"
The Equality Inaugural
Obama's Second Inaugural Will Stand the Test of Time
Presidents use their inaugural addresses as an opportunity to talk about the future. But when they take the oath of office for a second time, they also use it to talk about the past. READ MORE >>
Inaugural Party-Hopping: Ralph Nader at a Ball Edition
There was probably only one event in Washington, on the eve of President Barack Obama's second inauguration, where a 9/11 truther could show up and sing his lonely song without interruption. READ MORE >>
Netanyahu's Nightmare: How Israel's Elections Could Surprise Us
Benjamin Netanyahu knows a thing or two about election-night surprises. In 1996, after months in which rival Shimon Peres seemed headed for a landslide, Netanyahu defied the exit polls and squeaked by in one of the great upsets of Israeli electoral history. “Went to bed with Peres, woke up with Netanyahu,” went the saying. READ MORE >>
Because we’re a serious political journal read by serious political people, when I had the chance to buttonhole California lawmakers who had gathered at the California State Society inauguration fashion show at the Washington Ritz Carlton on Saturday, what I really wanted to know was: What were their Oscar pics? READ MORE >>
