The American public has no patience for self-proclaimed anti-abortion crusaders who only push policies that lead to more abortions. And so these crusaders, who have had their way under the reign George Bush, have cleverly cloaked their agenda. Particularly, they've hidden the fact they oppose birth control, the most effective way to fight unintended pregnancies. But yesterday, they were outed. And then the anti-birth control activists were delivered a left hook in the form of a Boxer Snowe amendment to the foreign aid bill that repeals of the Global Gag Rule.

The Senate approved it 53 to 41. The Boxer Snowe amendment (which Bush promises to veto) exposes the true purpose of the Global Gag Rule: to limit access to family planning for the poorest people on earth. The gag rule prohibits US funding for any service anywhere in the world that refers women for abortion services. They can't, under the gag rule, even discuss the abortion option. This blow was followed by another. The house had already come up with its own attack on the anti-contraceptors. In June it voted to supply reproductive health organizations around the world with contraceptives, a way to sidestep the ban on funding. The Boxer Snowe amendment went further, lifting the ban altogether.

This development ought to be something that those who claim to oppose abortion advocate. At least logic dictates that they should join in the campaign to prevent unwanted pregnancy. But that's not going to happen. Anti-contraception activists, like presidential candidate Senator Brownback, have already started the righteous grandstanding. He's started the usual misinformation campaign, trying to pretend that support for contraception is tantamount to funding for abortion.

Of course, Brownback et. al., never mention that because of the Helms amendment to the Foreign Operations appropriations bill no taxpayer dollars have been spent to provide or "promote" abortion services overseas since 1973,( i.e. since abortion was legalized in our country.)

The Global Gag Rule has been an anti-contraception success story and with Bush's promised veto it will remain that way.

_{Photo by Meredith Farmer}