Some Elements of the GOP Are Publically Calling For a Softer Stance on Contraception Policies

In late December, Republican strategist Juleanna Glover wrote an op-ed in the New York Times, calling on her fellow GOPers to open themselves to Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal’s proposal of making oral contraceptives available “over the counter”.

Appearing on MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell, Glover was emphatic about her party’s need to abandon its purist pro-life stance which views emergency contraception as the moral equivalent of murder, yet she still reiterated the GOP platform of opposing federal funding for Planned Parenthood. (Watch the full interview here.)

Mitchell: “Would you still agree with the idea of denying funding to Planned Parenthood? Because 3% of the work that it does — even though its work predominantly is on women’s health issues, 3% is separately funded — privately funded abortion services.”

Glover: “The Republican party has been emphatically clear, and should continue to be emphatically clear that we do not believe that federal funds should go to abortion providing entities. Title 10 is not the only program though that gives money to Planned Parenthood. You also have Medicaid family planning services delivered through Planned Parenthood across the country.”

While Glover’s interview contained a foot-noted attack on Planned Parenthood, it was a clear sign of a moderate push within the GOP to excise the extreme-right elements that enabled the 2012 election disaster. It could also be a preview of a softened stance from Republicans on social issues for 2016.

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