New polling from Data for Progress shows large portions of Americans in opposition to proposals from House Republicans to upend access to abortion and gender-affirming care for members of the military.
Towards potentially accomplishing these aims, Republicans added amendments to this year’s iteration of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which funds the nation’s defense apparatus for a fiscal year, though Senate deliberations remained to be held after the House finished its first round. The amendment relating to abortion would block the infamous Defense Department policy that provides travel support and other benefits to personnel seeking an abortion and other care. The amendment covering gender-affirming care would, meanwhile, block the military from funding it for many personnel.
Republican affronts against gender-affirming care, which is often sought and obtained by transgender individuals, have often been confined to or oriented around children, but as here, targets have sometimes included other groups, even if entirely different in age. A full 51 percent of overall respondents opposed blocking the military from providing that travel support for certain individuals seeking an abortion, some of whom may need to trek especially long distances because of the GOP states that have leaped to impose new limits on abortion now that Roe was overturned. Even among Republicans, 33 percent of respondents opposed the House’s amendment that would impose the block.
A question relating to gender-affirming care that was cited by Data for Progress was more general, asking respondents whether they felt measures targeting LGBTQ+ communities should not be included in military spending bills. A full 60 percent agreed, meaning they opposed the inclusion of provisions targeting those Americans in a funding bill with the stated purpose of providing financial support for the military. That portion included 51 percent of Republicans, putting a slim majority of the party’s voters directly at odds with their current majority in the House. Asked whether transgender personnel in the military should have access to medically necessary care, 63 percent agreed with the sentiment. The overall pools of respondents specifically featured likely voters, and the polling was completed July 19-20.
