On the Western Banks of the Shenandoah

A day after President Obama issued a statement in support of abortion rights while thousands his fellow citizens rallied for the pro-life position just miles away, the President lifted a ban on funding for international groups that perform or promote abortions. From FoxNews:

The move, long expected in the Democratic president’s first week in office, will be welcomed by liberals and criticized by abortion rights foes.

The so-called Mexico City policy requires any non-governmental organization to agree before receiving U.S. funds that they will “neither perform nor actively promote abortion as a method of family planning in other nations.”

It is also known as the “global gag rule,” because it prohibits taxpayer funding for groups that even talk about abortion if there is an unplanned pregnancy.

The policy was first instituted by President Ronald Reagan in 1984 and continued by President George H.W. Bush. The policy was reversed by President Bill Clinton in 1993, and re-instated by President George W. Bush in 2001.

President Obama has promised to blaze a new path forward on many issues, but he is quickly making it clear (as he did during the campaign) that he is a rank and file social liberal. Social conservatives will react accordingly. Regardless of Obama’s victory, I think we will see that America remains a divided nation on many of these issues. 

And the culture wars rage on.