This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, March 4, 2011 - As part of their quest to woo U.S. Senate votes, Missouri's Planned Parenthood activists are circulating a survey that indicates a majority of state residents back the organization's programs that offer contraceptive and general health services for women and men.
The ;poll of 752 Missourians was conducted by Public Policy Polling, a North Carolina-based firm that generally conducts polls for Democrats. The survey, which was done via automated calls, was to be released Friday. Its findings were similar to those released Thursday by two independent national polls paid for by news outlets.
The state and national polls are being released as Planned Parenthood nationally is lobbying the Democratic-controlled U.S. Senate to block last month's actions by the GOP-controlled House to strip all federal funding that had gone to Planned Parenthood for family-planning services not related to abortions.
A local Planned Parenthood official said that Missouri was among the individual states polled because each has key U.S. senators, such as Missouri's Claire McCaskill, deemed crucial to the effort to block the House cuts.
Social conservatives long have sought to end the aid and contend that the federal money frees up other money for Planned Parenthood operations in Missouri and elsewhere that do provide abortions.
Planned Parenthood has emphasized that federal law requires that its abortion operations be kept separate, physically and fiscally.
In the case of the polls, critics note that neither of the national polls, nor the Missouri survey, point out the role of some Planned Parenthood outlets in providing abortions. Planned Parenthood activists maintain there was no reason to do so since the polls were about preventive services.
Even so, the survey in Missouri indicates a possible polarization on the issue, by age.
The overall percentages show support for Planned Parenthood, ranging from a slight majority to close to two-thirds of those polled, depending on the question. But the survey also shows that those polled under 30 strongly oppose allowing Planned Parenthood to continue obtaining federal money. Opposition also was registered by the African-Americans polled.
Alison Gee, vice president of public policy for Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region, said the subsamples for minorities and those under 30 are too small to be statistically significant. Fewer than 10 percent of those polled were in either group. Instead, more than two-thirds of those polled in Missouri were age 46 or older.
Gee maintained that the poll overall shows that "Planned Parenthood is seen as a trusted advisor."
In any case, Gee said the Missouri numbers are being touted, in part, to bolster the backing of McCaskill, who supports abortion rights but also has been pressing for overall federal budget cuts.
The poll is being released, Gee said, "to give support for Sen. McCaskill" by showing public support.
The votes of McCaskill and some like-minded colleagues will be needed if Planned Parenthood is to have any chance of stopping the House's action.
Gee said the poll's numbers also will be forwarded to new U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo. He is expected to side with House Republicans and support the elimination of funding to Planned Parenthood.