Supreme Court Officially Allows Emergency Abortions in Idaho, for Now

Ann E. Marimow and Dan Diamond at The Washington Post explain the Supreme Court’s ruling that Idaho hospitals that receive federal funds must allow emergency abortion care to stabilize patients, despite the state’s strict abortion ban. The ruling did not address the larger question of whether federal law that mandates emergency abortions if needed to address threatening health conditions short of death supersedes state abortion bans nationally. PRRI research finds that 45% of Idahoans support abortion access in most or all cases and only 12% say abortion should be illegal in all cases.

The Convocation Unscripted: The Last Presidential Debate in America

In a new episode of The Convocation Unscripted, PRRI President and Founder Robert P. Jones, Ph.D., joins fellow contributors Jemar Tisby, Ph.D., and Kristin Du Mez, Ph.D., to recap last night’s presidential debate. The hosts discuss their reactions to President Joe Biden’s debate performance and their frustration that former President Donald Trump’s responses, which consisted overwhelmingly of lies and misinformation, were not fact-checked by the debate moderators or adequately rebutted by Biden. Jones concludes by underscoring the danger of Trump’s continual demonization of immigrants throughout the debate and urging listeners to be skeptical of headlines overstating poll results in the coming weeks.

Why Both Sides in America’s Partisan War Feel Like They’re Losing

David Lauter for the LA Times looks atwhy both the left and the right feel they are losing in shaping the United States how they see fit. On the right, rising secularism and shifting views on LGBTQ rights have stifled conservative aspirations, while the inability to implement policies on universal healthcare, climate change, and reparations has made liberal activists pessimistic. Lauter argues that, in this time of bipartisan pessimism, it will take a message of optimism to reignite the American public. PRRI research finds more than three-fourths of Americans (77%) believe that the country is going in the wrong direction.

Oklahoma Superintendent Ryan Walters Orders Schools To Teach the Bible

NBC News’ Tyler Kingkade reports that Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters announced Thursday that the state will require schools to teach the Bible and have a copy in every classroom. Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt also recently approved a package of regulations from Walters that mandates time for prayer at school and expanded the state Education Department’s “foundational values” to include recognition of a “Creator.” PRRI finds that white evangelical Protestants (78%) are the religious group most likely to agree that public schools interfere too much with parents’ rights to determine what their children are taught.