The Pro-Abortion Phony Baloney “War on Women” Has Been Defeated

National   |   Steven Ertelt   |   Nov 5, 2014   |   5:39PM   |   Washington, DC

If there is one main takeaway from Tuesday’s mid-term elections, it’s the fact that the phoney, baloney “war on women” is over. Planned Parenthood, NARAL, and their pro-abortion allies have desperately tried to tag pro-life groups and candidates with the anti-woman tag by claiming the oppose women by virtue of the fact that they oppose abortion and being forced to pay for abortion-causing drugs.

oldwhitemenLast night’s overwhelming victory for pro-life candidates showed the abortion-centered ‘war on women’ strategy has completely failed. Most of the candidates in top-tier races where the war on women tactic was employed won their races.

Abortion darlings Wendy Davis and Sandra Fluke lost their bids for re-election and Davis even lost with women voters. Not only did Davis lose, but she lost by the biggest margin since the 1998 Texas gubernatorial election.

As Allison Howard of Concerned Women for America asked: “If Wendy Davis and Sandra Fluke are the leaders of a so-called war, and they both lose…is the war over?”

And the war on women attacks failed so badly that they were parodied in Colorado, where pro-abortion Senator Mark Udall, who ran half of his campaign ads on the war on women attacking Senator-elect Cory Gardner’s pro-life views. Udall was so obsessed with the war on women claims that he was dubbed in the media “Mark Uterus” and derided even by the liberal Denver Post, which ultimately endorsed Gardner.

Meanwhile, Cosmopolitan magazine attempted to enter the fray and attack pro-life Republican, but of Cosmo’s 12 endorsed candidates, only two won.

“The election buried once and for all the Democrat Party’s phony ‘war on women,’” said Life Issues Institute Executive Director Brad Mattes.

Penny Nance of Concerned Women for America says the war on women has become offensive.

“We should all be offended that Democrats describe policy differences as a ‘war on women.’ It’s ignorant and insulting when Democrats equate a policy debate to ‘war’ when our sisters overseas are in the midst of a real war – being attacked, sold into slavery, and even killed at the hands of ISIS, Boko Haram, and other terrorists,” she said.

prolifewomen16Nance continued: “Under President Obama and Senate Democrats, 3.7 million women have moved into poverty, and the median income for women has dropped over $700. But the Democrat Party refuses to address these serious issues. Instead, they pander to women with the proverbial box of chocolates, which includes promises of so-called ‘free contraception’ and ‘birth control.'”

Marjorie Dannenfelser, President of the Susan B. Anthony List, which elected scored of pro-life women and other candidates facing war on women attacks, also says the war on women is dead.

“The bottom has fallen out of the abortion-centered ‘war on women’ strategy. Why is that?  Women just don’t agree with the shrinking ranks of the feminist left like EMILY’s List and NARAL that unlimited abortion is the great liberator for women. And they are tired of the politics of division and grievance,” Dannenfelser said.

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She continued:

Consider this:  EMILY’s List endorsed women chose to remain silent on the issue of abortion.  Why? EMILY’s List and their best campaign strategists told them to button it up on abortion.  Kay Hagan, Michele Nunn, and Alison Grimes, all devoted to unlimited abortion as a fundamental right, chose to focus upon other issues.  Clarity on abortion for them was the enemy.  But as we have always said, hiding from this issue is impossible.  Our candidates stood strong while these three women were resoundingly defeated.  Today our more than 200 Women Speak Out PAC activists in Louisiana will carry on their job and work to defeat Mary Landrieu.  Her attempts to gain a pro-life label while voting pro-abortion have helped her in her downward slope.  We believe Bill Cassidy and our ground game will help her out the door.

To the extent that abortion was used as an issue by pro-abortion candidates, those candidates suffered a backlash.  Consider Wendy Davis in Texas, Mark Udall in Colorado and Bruce Braley in Iowa.  Wendy Davis ran from a platform of late term unrestricted abortion.  In Colorado even the Denver Post nicknamed Mark Udall ‘Mark Uterus’ for his over the top attack ads.

Meanwhile, our candidates stood firm as their opponents attempted to avoid backlash.  Joni Ernst – a pro-life mother, military veteran and longtime public servant – refused to back down from her pro-life record even in the face of outrageous attacks from Braley and the NARAL. When asked to clarify his position, Braley directly lied to debate moderators about his position on late term abortion.  Well, that’s one way of handling it.  Another is run away from it.  Greg Orman running against Senator Pat Roberts in Kansas literally ran away from a voter who attempted to ascertain his position on late term abortion.

Now we have a Senate that is more human when it comes to women’s politics.  It is reflective of the women of America, not a minority, moneyed power elite who too often cast men and children as obstacles to success.   We are encouraged with the new pro-life Senate and look forward to a vote on our top legislative priority, the Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. This compassionate, popular legislation will protect the lives of more than 18,000 unborn children per year.  It is supported by a majority of Democrats, young people and women.

In attacking Joni Ernst last week Hillary Clinton said ‘it’s not enough to be a woman. You have to be committed to expand rights and opportunities for all women.’ The abortion centered war on women strategy is dead because of this strait-jacket feminism.  The one that says, ‘you are a real woman if you agree with my ideology.’ America has had enough of it and has communicated that clearly.

The hollow and silly “War on Women” narrative may never disappear, but for now it’s dead.