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Catholic Politicians and the Politics of Abortion Position Taking

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 September 2017

Kathleen Marchetti  and
David O'Connell
Kathleen Marchetti*
Affiliation:
Dickinson College
David O'Connell*
Affiliation:
Dickinson College
*
Address correspondence and reprint requests to: Kathleen Marchetti, Department of Political Science, Dickinson College, P. O. Box 1773, Carlisle, PA 17013. E-mail: marchetk@dickinson.edu; or to: David O'Connell, Department of Political Science, Dickinson College, P. O. Box 1773, Carlisle, PA 17013. E-mail: oconneld@dickinson.edu.
Address correspondence and reprint requests to: Kathleen Marchetti, Department of Political Science, Dickinson College, P. O. Box 1773, Carlisle, PA 17013. E-mail: marchetk@dickinson.edu; or to: David O'Connell, Department of Political Science, Dickinson College, P. O. Box 1773, Carlisle, PA 17013. E-mail: oconneld@dickinson.edu.
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Abstract

Four decades after the Court's landmark decision in Roe v. Wade, the issue of abortion persists as a point of contention for elected officials. The Catholic Church has taken a leading role in the pro-life movement, putting many Catholic representatives in a difficult position as they can be cross-pressured by their party, their constituents, and their own beliefs. Given these pressures, how do Catholic legislators explain their positions on abortion? We address this question via an analysis of public statements about abortion made by Catholic representatives and senators in the 108th Congress. We examine which members comment on abortion and use automated text analysis to measure legislators' certainty and use of moral and religious terms when discussing abortion. Multivariate analysis shows that gender, ethnicity, and an interaction between a member's position on abortion and the number of Catholics in their constituency shape how Catholic legislators discuss abortion.

Type
Article
Information
Politics and Religion , Volume 11 , Issue 2 , June 2018 , pp. 281 - 308
Copyright
Copyright © Religion and Politics Section of the American Political Science Association 2017 

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Footnotes

Co-authorship of the manuscript is equal and authors are listed alphabetically. The authors wish to acknowledge the valuable suggestions and feedback provided by the editor and three anonymous reviewers at Politics and Religion. In addition, the authors thank Mary Martin for her assistance with data collection for this article.

References

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