ABSTRACT
The supreme court's decisions in Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton not only left the abortion dilemma unresolved but actually escalated debate over the issue. Pro-choice forces rejoiced when the Court made it clear that the right to have an abortion was based on a privacy right found in the US Constitution. The abortion issue constituted a very real dilemma for many lawmakers— some of whom saw new abortion restrictions as a compromise, whereas others viewed them only as a first step toward total eradication of legal abortion. One of the first televangelists, Reverend Jerry Falwell was also among the first to see how fundamentalists could be moved to action by governmental decisions such as the Supreme Court's rulings on abortion or civil rights. Interest-group forces mobilized around both issues, and candidates were forced to take a stand on abortion.
