Heitkamp Punts On Abortion Question

From the way some in the North Dakota media are portraying the abortion debate in North Dakota you’d get the idea that the state was pretty evenly divided on the question. But that perception doesn’t seem to match reality. For one thing, every single one of the pro-life bills which passed in the legislature did so with wide, and bi-partisan majorities.

For another, it sure seems like Senator Heidi Heitkamp knows which way the wind blows on the abortion question in the state. Per this series of tweets from Dickinson Press reporter Bryan Horwath, Heitkamp was asked whether or not she agreed with Governor Jack Dalrymple signing the abortion bills and she punted:

Senator Heitkamp will admit that she’s pro-abortion, but it’s worth remembering that during her campaign against Republican Rick Berg she was very low-key on the issue of abortion. Even as national liberal interests make a big deal out of some of Rep. Berg’s votes on abortion in the state legislature, Heitkamp remained silent.

Heitkamp wanting to stay out of the limelight on the abortion issue speaks volumes about the state’s position. I was talking with a statewide elected leader yesterday who told me that while the pro-abortion folks may make more noise, there is most definitely a strong “silent majority” of pro-lifers in the state.

Though we both agreed that it would be wise if that majority weren’t so silent these days.