Senate GOP campaign arm highlighting abortion talking points for candidates

The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) is highlighting talking points and polling on the issue of abortion for its candidates in the wake of the leaked draft Supreme Court opinion overturning Roe v. Wade.

The internal polling, which was conducted by On Message Inc. and first obtained by Politico, suggests that Republicans are looking to go on the offensive on the issue against Democratic opponents.

The findings zero in on various talking points including whether federal funds should be used to pay for abortions, whether to ban late-term abortions and whether federal judges should have the power to make laws.

Sixty-five percent of respondents said they strongly or somewhat agreed that taxpayer funds should not be used to fund abortions, while 30 percent said they disagreed. Fifty-nine percent of respondents said they strongly or somewhat agreed with the statement that “it is acceptable for states to limit late-term abortions if the state makes it affordable to put babies up for adoption and financially assists the birth mother.” Twenty-six percent said they disagreed.

Meanwhile, 54 percent of respondents said they strongly or somewhat agreed that “unelected federal judges should not make laws” and that “states should be able to establish their own laws on abortion.” Thirty-two percent said they disagreed.

“No matter what the Supreme Court decides, what’s clear is that the Democrat Party is well outside the mainstream on the issue of abortion. They support late-term abortion up until the moment of birth and oppose any restrictions whatsoever,” NRSC Chairman Rick Scott (R-Fla.) said in a statement to The Hill. “They also want to force taxpayers to fund abortion, including abortions overseas. The NRSC has been conducting polling and focus groups for the last few months to give our candidates ammunition to fight back against the lies from radical Democrats and we’ll continue to take the fight to them.”

The drilling down onto these questions comes as polls show that overall Roe, the landmark 1973 Supreme Court ruling that enshrined the right to an abortion, is widely popular. A Washington Post-ABC poll released Tuesday found 54 percent of Americans say they want to keep Roe on the books, while 28 percent said it should be overturned.

The latest polling from the NRSC also comes after the committee released its own memo on Tuesday outlining how GOP Senate candidates should approach the issue.

The letter calls on the leaker of the draft opinion to be “found, fired, and potentially prosecuted” but encourages a “compassionate” message when it comes to abortion itself.

Democrats, on the other hand, argue that the leaked draft puts GOP candidates on the defensive, forcing them to address the issue over others like inflation, crime and the surge of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border.

“If this report is true, this Republican attack on abortion access, birth control and women’s health care has dramatically escalated the stakes of the 2022 election,” said Christie Roberts, Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee executive director. “At this critical moment, we must protect and expand Democrats’ Senate majority with the power to confirm or reject Supreme Court justices.”