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Three major advocates of abortion rights are planning to spend nearly $30 million to defeat John McCain’s run for president, citing his new running mate as the core reason. NARAL Pro-Choice America, Planned Parenthood and EMILY’s List have Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) in their crosshairs, calling her a staunch opponent of abortion rights. “This is the most anti-choice ticket in history of the Republican Party,” said Beth Shipp, the political director of NARAL. “McCain put someone as outside the mainstream as you can on his ticket, which is Sarah Palin,” Shipp added.Hoping to drive a wedge between the pro-life GOP base and party centrists who favor abortion rights, NARAL Pro-Choice America plans to raise and spend $10 million to communicate to voters in 34 to 35 congressional districts and battleground states. The group is also targeting independents. Planned Parenthood, another liberal group, plans to spend $10 million on its One Million Strong campaign, an effort to mobilize “pro-choice voters in battleground states,” said spokesman Tait Sye. And EMILY’s List, a group that backs female Democratic candidates who support abortion, will spend nearly as much as the other groups on its Women Vote! program. The McCain campaign did not respond to a request for comment. NARAL sent out an alert to more than 500,000 of its supporters immediately after Sen. McCain (Ariz.) chose Palin as his running mate. The alert highlighted Palin’s opposition to abortion in cases of rape or incest. The Planned Parenthood campaign began in January and will pick up intensity in the wake of Palin’s selection. “Her extreme record on Roe v. Wade won’t help him with women voters,” said Sye, the group’s spokesman, in reference to the landmark Supreme Court decision that established a woman’s right to an abortion. The plans by women’s groups and pro-abortion rights groups to wage a massive campaign about Palin’s record are driven by recent polling by Garin-Hart-Yang Research Group and commissioned by EMILY’s List. The poll shows that most women react negatively to Palin when informed of her views. “When women voters learn that Palin opposes abortion, even in cases of rape or incest, opposes stem cell research, and as a governor opposed funding for state pre-kindergarten programs and cut funding for a dropout prevention program, a majority say each of these aspects of her record make them feel less favorable toward her,” stated a memo drafted by Garin-Hart-Yang and EMILY’s List. Women’s groups say Palin will hurt McCain’s ability to attract disillusioned supporters of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton’s (D-N.Y.) presidential bid. These advocates accuse McCain of downplaying his opposition to abortion rights to enhance his appeal among independent and centrist Republican women. They noted that Palin did not mention “abortion” during her GOP convention speech Wednesday night. A Washington Post-ABC News poll last month showed that 20 percent of people who voted for Clinton in the Democratic primary said they would support McCain. But abortion-rights advocates say that number will diminish. “The more that women and particularly Clinton voters heard about Palin’s position on key issues important to them, the less likely they are to vote for McCain,” said Ramona Oliver, communications director for EMILY’s List. Oliver said the group “will target and mobilize millions of women across the country in battleground states and districts.” Oliver could not divulge the program’s total cost but noted that the group spent between $7 million and $8 million in the last election cycle. EMILY’s List is expected to spend as much or more money mobilizing female voters for this presidential election.
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