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While the leading Republican presidential candidates agree on many moral questions — from the divine foundation of ethics to the rejection of reproductive rights and marriage equality — new research suggests that the candidates differ when it comes to the focus their moral concerns. According to the University of Southern California-run web site Election 2012, USC psychology professor Jesse Graham surveyed 35,000 self-identified conservatives and liberals to gauge their varying moral values (and by extension, those of their preferred candidates). What did he find? Social conservatives, like Rick Santorum, care more about loyalty to family and nation, respect for tradition and authorities, and maintaining physical and spiritual purity. But libertarians, like Ron Paul, typically don’t care about these group-focused concerns. Their central moral value…
A record 64 percent of Americans consider the honesty and ethical standards of members of Congress “low” or “very low,” according to a new survey from Gallup. The result matches the poll’s record “low”/”very low” rating, received by lobbyists in 2008. Gallup has measured the public’s perception of ethical standards in various profession since 1976. To help put this finding into context with other professions, take a look at this chart: And to help put the lawmakers’ rating in historical perspective, take a look at this:
In the most recent case of the Republican war on reproductive rights, the US House of Representatives last week approved a bill that would allow federally funded hospitals that oppose abortion to refuse to perform the procedure — even when a woman would die without it. The bill, known as H.R. 358, would also ban federal funding for health care plans that merely include abortion coverage. This would go a step beyond existing law, which disallows federal dollars from being spent directly on abortions. (Note: see my previous post on this bill here). H.R. 358 passed 251-170 after an emotional debate on the House floor. One lawmaker, Rep. Jackie Speier (D-Calif.), said she once faced a situation in which an abortion was medically necessary.…
The US House of Representatives is expected to vote Thursday on a bill that would allow federally funded hospitals that oppose abortion to refuse to perform the procedure — even when a woman would die without it. From Laura Basset on The Huffington Post: Under current law, every hospital that receives Medicare or Medicaid money is legally required to provide emergency care to any patient in need, regardless of his or her financial situation. If a hospital is unable to provide what the patient needs — including a life-saving abortion — it has to transfer the patient to a hospital that can. Under H.R. 358, dubbed the “Protect Life Act” and sponsored by Rep. Joe Pitts (R-Pa.), hospitals that don’t want to provide abortions…