One Megadonor Is Crippling the Pro-Life Movement—and No One Knows Who It Is
One Megadonor Is Crippling the Pro-Life Movementand No One Knows Who It Is
Well, some probably know. But they aren't talking.
Nina Martin, ProPublicaJul. 14, 2016 6:00 AM
Back in January, as the Supreme Court was preparing for its most important abortion case in a generation, some four dozen social scientists submitted a brief explaining why they believed key portions of Texas law HB 2 should be struck down. The brief was a 58-page compendium of research on everything from the relative dangers of abortion versus childbirth to the correlation between abortion barriers and postpartum depression. "In this politically challenged area, it is particularly important that assertions about health and safety are evaluated using reliable scientific evidence," the researchers declared.
Six months later, the material they submitted clearly helped shape Justice Stephen Breyer's majority opinion in Whole Women's Health v Hellerstedt, which found critical elements of HB 2 unconstitutional. This decision also handed a resounding though less noticed victory to private donors who've spent more than a decade quietly pouring at least $200 million dollars into the scientists' work, creating an influential abortion-research complex that has left abortion opponents in the dust.
The research initiative dates back at least to the early 2000s and became more urgent after the high court held in 2007 that in cases of "medical and scientific uncertainty," legislatures could have "wide discretion" to pass laws restricting abortion. Since then, a primary objective of abortion rights supporters has been to establish a high level of medical certaintyboth about the safety of the procedure and about what happens when a woman's reproductive options are drastically curtailed or eliminated.
There's little or no publicly funded research on this controversial subject in the United States, so for years basic information was lackingfrom how often patients have complications to what happens to women who want abortions but can't obtain them.
More:
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2016/07/abortion-research-buffett
riversedge
(70,242 posts)work will continue in these states.
..........Researchers funded by the Buffett Foundation and others, meanwhile, have mounted projects that look at the impact of abortion restrictions in Georgia, Utah, Ohio, and Tennessee.
"The role of research and the nature of relevant research will be different in different contexts," CRR's Toti said. "But what the court made clear is that abortion restrictions are going to be [evaluated] on an evidence-based standard. States can no longer rely on speculation about the potential benefits of [a] law." The question now, she said, is "what actual benefit does a regulation provide and how does that compare with the extent of the burden the law is going to impose on women."
TexasBushwhacker
(20,202 posts)They say "nobody knows" who the donor(s) is and then proceed to name the Buffett Foundation and others. In any case, I'm glad they are being so generous.
They didn't name Ted Turner, but he's been a big supporter of Planned Parenthood for decades. He may not be contributing as much as before since his net worth has plummeted to $2 Billion from a high of $80B).
MADem
(135,425 posts)I was very impressed when he stepped up and wrote a big check after the Komen foundation pulled the rug out from under them.
http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/02/bloomberg-to-give-250000-to-planned-parenthood/?_r=0
TexasBushwhacker
(20,202 posts)It exists solely to provide a big fat paycheck for Susan Komen's sister, Nancy Brinker. They spend almost all their money on various "pink" events, while giving relatively little to research. Fortunately RWNJ Brinker stepped down after the Planned Parenthood fiasco.
MADem
(135,425 posts)How anyone could make money like that, off their dead sister, for all those years, is beyond me. I guess I just don't have the "craven" gene!
I will not give them a dime and urge others to send their cash straight to PP!!!
Wounded Bear
(58,670 posts)basing important decisions on data and science. More reasons to love the Buffetts.
ehrnst
(32,640 posts)greymattermom
(5,754 posts)Maybe a private donor, or even a foundation would do the same for that.
NewJeffCT
(56,828 posts)but, the left doesn't have nearly as many "sugar daddies" or "sugar mommas" as the right does. (I think they're almost all male on the GOP side, no idea on the left)