Opinion: A winning strategy for the GOP on abortion

Editor’s note: Carrie Sheffield is the author of “Prophets for the Caravan: A Journey of Healing and Forgiveness.“ The opinions expressed in this comment are her own. View more opinion on CNN.

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A recent report found that abortions increased between 2022 and 2023, the first full calendar year since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. It is an unfortunate sign that America has failed to reduce the number of abortions.

Polls show large numbers of Americans still oppose overturning Roe, and even some red states have voted to protect access to abortion.

However, in some areas, the pro-life position on this issue has broad support – and could have more. The Gallup poll found that 64 percent of Americans support some restrictions on abortion, with only 34 percent saying “abortions should be legal under all circumstances.” Polls from the Pew Research Center found that only 19 percent of Americans say third-trimester abortion should be legal in all cases.

As a pro-life Republican, I believe there is a winning abortion strategy for the GOP to embrace, one that pushes for a goal both sides of the aisle can support: making abortion less common. The first step is to work together to prevent unwanted pregnancies. After all, preventing pregnancies rather than terminating them is less risky for women and much more cost-effective—a win-win for everyone.

A key way to do that is by increasing access to contraceptives, which is why it’s important that former President Donald Trump said in a Social Truth post on Tuesday that he supports access to contraceptives after some misinterpreted an interview which he granted this week.

Asked if he would consider restrictions on birth control, he said he was working out more details about his official policy position and would make a statement soon.

But it would also help if the Joe Biden of 2024 listened to the Biden of 2006.

“I don’t see abortion as a choice and a right. I think it’s always a tragedy. And I think it should be rare and safe,” Biden said in a 2006 interview with Texas Monthly that CNN found and resurfaced in 2019. “I think we should focus on how to limit the number of abortions. And (we) should be able to have a common ground and a consensus to do (that). I think the vast majority of the American people believe it can be done.”

Overall, abortions rose 11 percent from 2020 to the highest number measured in the United States in more than a decade. An estimated 1,037,000 abortions occurred in 2023, but the effective adoption of birth control measures could mean a significant reduction in the future.

Access to free birth control lowers abortion rates, researchers at the University of Washington School of Medicine reported. Martha Bailey, an economics professor at the University of California Los Angeles, led a study that also found that expanding access to birth control reduces abortion.

More young people have adopted permanent contraception, such as tubal ligations and vasectomies, since the Women’s Health Organization’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson that overturned Roe, according to a study published by the JAMA Health Forum. However, about half of women who have abortions report that they did not even use contraception during pregnancy.

The GOP should build on the work Republican women are doing to expand access to over-the-counter contraceptives, including through the Oral Contraception Act of 2023. The bill, introduced last year by nine House Republicans, “expands access to over-the-counter contraceptives by increasing regulatory clarity to promote competition and provide women with options for preventive health care,” according to a statement released by the sponsors.

Unfortunately, some in the pro-life community, especially Catholics, oppose birth control. I respectfully disagree and I am not alone. Even 83 percent of U.S. Catholics want the church to allow the use of contraception, Pew reported. I hope that more of those who oppose abortion will come to see the provision of contraception as crucial to the cause of reducing abortions.

Meanwhile, Democrats shouldn’t overplay Dobbs’ decision as paving the way for a contraception ban. The Supreme Court in Griswold v. Connecticut recognized free access to birth control as early as 1965. And the Dobbs majority decision explicitly cites Griswold, saying, “The Court emphasizes that this decision concerns the constitutional right to abortion and no other right. Nothing in this opinion should be construed to call into question non-abortion precedents.” Justice Clarence Thomas, in his Dobbs concurrence, said Griswold should be reconsidered. However, it is a moot point as he was the only judge out of nine to raise the issue.

There are legitimate religious freedom concerns about whether religious groups can be forced to pay for birth control for their employees, such as Little Sisters of the Poor and Hobby Lobby. But exempting private organizations from paying for birth control is far different from universal or government restriction on access to birth control itself.

Sadly, long gone are the days of former President Bill Clinton, who popularized the call to make abortions “safe, legal and rare.” Now, some on the left are pushing for measures that would allow late-term abortions and refuse to give a deadline for the procedure.

A bipartisan focus on prevention could go a long way toward eliminating divisions. Helping women — and men — prevent unwanted pregnancies is a powerful message that should be embraced by Republicans and Democrats alike. It’s good for politics, but most importantly, it’s good for women and their families.