Why has the word 'rare' dropped out of the liberal parlance about abortion of late?

[whirlingmerc]

Bill Clinton formulation pledging to make abortion "safe, legal, and rare." In 2008, after a behind-the-scenes battle, the platform dropped "safe, legal, and rare," but included language indicating reduction of abortions as a goal. In 2012, there was no longer any language referring to abortion as a bad thing that needed to go away as much as possible.

Interestingly, Hillary Clinton was still using the "safe, legal, and rare" formulation as recently as 2014. But the "rare" language seems to have dropped out during the current election cycle.

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/06/tim-kaine-the-evolution-of-pro-choice-politics.html#

 

[George-ananda]

I'm guessing they realize it is not going to be 'rare' anytime soon, and they still want to sound sooo pro-abortion.

 

[beenherebeforeagain]

Probably because the rate and number of legal abortions has dropped significantly in the last 20 years. Of course, if made illegal or almost impossible, as conservatives seem to be pushing for across the states, that does not mean that abortions will go away--they will simply go back underground, making them unsafe as they mostly were before Roe V. Wade.

Of course, more than half of pre-Roe v. Wade abortions were performed by physicians in hospitals--but back then, it was possible to do such things "off the books," without official record. Nowadays, it would be all but impossible to perform an illegal safe abortion in a regular hospital or clinic, due to the reporting and documentation requirements at all medical facilities.

 

[fantome profane]

The kind of policies that would help to make abortion rare are all the policies that the republicans fight so hard against. Healthcare, minimum wage, affordable university, sex education etc. These are the things that would make abortion rare.

 

[Ouroboros]

Abortion rate is declining in US: http://www.theblaze.com/stories/201...rtion-rate-is-declining-in-the-united-states/

 

[tytlyf]

Sounds like a conspiracy theory

 

[Valjean]

Just because someone leaves out an adjective that is often coupled with two others doesn't indicate any major policy change. Why must all three adjectives be included in every remark about abortion?

 

[Willamena]

Bill Clinton formulation pledging to make abortion "safe, legal, and rare." In 2008, after a behind-the-scenes battle, the platform dropped "safe, legal, and rare," but included language indicating reduction of abortions as a goal. In 2012, there was no longer any language referring to abortion as a bad thing that needed to go away as much as possible.

Interestingly, Hillary Clinton was still using the "safe, legal, and rare" formulation as recently as 2014. But the "rare" language seems to have dropped out during the current election cycle.

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/06/tim-kaine-the-evolution-of-pro-choice-politics.html#

Did it ever refer to "rare" as a bad thing? Or a hopeful thing?

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

Bill Clinton formulation pledging to make abortion "safe, legal, and rare." In 2008, after a behind-the-scenes battle, the platform dropped "safe, legal, and rare," but included language indicating reduction of abortions as a goal. In 2012, there was no longer any language referring to abortion as a bad thing that needed to go away as much as possible.

Interestingly, Hillary Clinton was still using the "safe, legal, and rare" formulation as recently as 2014. But the "rare" language seems to have dropped out during the current election cycle.

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/06/tim-kaine-the-evolution-of-pro-choice-politics.html#

I hadn't noticed the change. I don't recall seeing any of the leading candidates for either party even mention abortion. Maybe they did, but it didn't make the coverage I've been seeing.

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

Just because someone leaves out an adjective that is often coupled with two others doesn't indicate any major policy change. Why must all three adjectives be included in every remark about abortion?

I think the "rare" part is especially ineffective. It's an attempt to reach out to the anti-choicers ("see? We're after a goal that you support, too!") but it fails in creating common ground, since the anti-choice movement generally doesn't support measures aimed at merely reducing the number of abortions. The Democrats aren't interested in also shaming and harming women while reducing abortions, so the anti-choice movement isn't interested in them.