Florida: State Aims to Counsel Against Abortion

[Michael Hoover <hooverm@xxxxxxxxxx>]

State aims to counsel against abortion
Gov. Jeb Bush's proposed hotline would tell pregnant women of
alternatives.

By Sean Mussenden | Tallahassee Bureau
Orlando Sentinel
Posted March 1, 2005

TALLAHASSEE -- Women with unwanted pregnancies would be counseled
against
having abortions under a taxpayer-financed state program announced by
Gov.
Jeb Bush's administration Monday.

The $4 million initiative, unveiled by Lt. Gov. Toni Jennings, would set
up
a state telephone hotline to direct pregnant women to nonprofit
organizations, possibly including some with religious affiliations, that
would encourage them to consider adoption and other alternatives to
abortion.

"We must create as many avenues as possible for [pregnant women] to be
informed of their options other than abortion, because we know that
these
decisions have a profound impact on their families and our community as
a
whole," said Jennings, a likely Republican candidate to replace Bush in
2006.

Jennings announced the proposal in Jacksonville flanked by the president
of
Florida Right to Life and leaders of several religious groups, including
the Florida Catholic Conference and the Islamic Center of Northeast
Florida. Funding for the program, which Bush included in his proposed
budget for this year, must still be approved during the annual
legislative
session that begins next week.

But family-planning groups and lawmakers who support abortion rights
said
that although the goal of reducing abortions was a positive one, Bush's
plan could be misleading to some pregnant women who would be given a
one-sided view of their options.

The governor's office and groups on both sides of the abortion debate
said
the effort represented a significant turn, at least in Florida, in the
battle over information given to women facing unwanted pregnancies. For
years, conservatives have favored "gag rules" that would cut off federal
funds to clinics that present abortion as an alternative.

Now, in addition to pushing restrictions on abortion counseling for
pregnant women, they are advocating the use of tax dollars to promote a
message that steers women toward adoption. Anti-abortion activists say
that's only fair.

"The abortion option is always there, with all the pro-abortion
networks.
It's about time that we got more government funds to support adoption,"
said Lynda Bell, spokesperson for Florida Right to Life.

Others say that a balance already exists.

For example, at Planned Parenthood and affiliated health centers, women
with unwanted pregnancies are given "unbiased" information about
adoption
and abortion to make a choice, said Stephanie Grutman, executive
director
of the Florida Association of Planned Parenthood Affiliates.

"We would never provide women with one-sided information," she said.
"That's what the governor wants to do. That's what the president wants
to
do. That's what Congress wants to do.

"At our clinics, we don't have to lobby women, because we give them all
the
information. We trust women to make the right decisions for them and
their
families," she added.

The money Gov. Bush wants to spend promoting adoption would be better
spent
on family-planning programs and birth-control education designed to
prevent
unwanted pregnancies, other abortion-rights supporters said.

"I would rather see us prevent the pregnancy. That's what we should be
focusing all our energy on -- making sure they never have to choose
between
abortion and adoption," said state Rep. Anne Gannon, D-Delray Beach.

Bush's proposal would promote abstinence to prevent unwanted
pregnancies.

The governor, speaking at a news conference in Tallahassee, said that it
was important that women with unwanted pregnancies consider all
available
options -- not just abortion.

Last year, 217,000 babies were born in Florida, compared with almost
92,000
abortions, according to the governor's office.

In the past four years, the number of abortions has risen 7 percent,
compared with a 5.4 percent increase in newborns during that same
period,
the governor's office said.

"It does trouble me that in a state as compassionate and caring as ours
. .
. the number of abortions that take place in our state grows," said
Bush, a
Roman Catholic who has long opposed abortion.

Bush did not announce the program himself Monday, instead delegating the
job to Jennings, one of three key Republicans already considering a
campaign for governor next year. The others are Attorney General Charlie
Crist and state Chief Financial Officer Tom Gallagher.

Being associated with the issue, a hot-button one for voters in the
Republican primary, should help Jennings burnish her conservative
credentials.

"This is the right idea at the right time," said Bell, of Florida Right
to
Life. "Would it be advantageous to the lieutenant governor? Absolutely."

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