(Angus Reid - CPOD Global Scan) - Adults in the United States remain split over pregnancy termination, according to a poll by the Los Angeles Times. 43 per cent of respondents say abortion should be legal in most or all cases, while 53 per cent disagree.

A Supreme Court ruling in 1973 gave American women the right to an abortion in the first trimester of pregnancy. U.S. president George W. Bush signed a federal restriction on late term abortions in November 2003, but the law was immediately challenged by U.S. District judge Richard Kopf, who issued a temporary restraining order.

Last April, Republican Kansas senator Sam Brownback introduced the Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act. The legislation would make it mandatory for abortion clinics to tell women about medical evidence that a fetus can experience pain by the twentieth week of gestation.

In October, U.S. Supreme Court chief justice William Rehnquist was hospitalized and treated for thyroid cancer. Eight of the nine current justices are over 65 years of age, and three members—Sandra Day O'Connor, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and John Paul Stevens—have had health problems.

In the Oct. 13 presidential debate, Bush said, "I will pick judges who will interpret the Constitution, but I'll have no litmus test." 45 per cent of respondents say they believe the president when he said he would not use a justice nominee's beliefs on abortion as the deciding factor, while 50 per cent disagree.

Polling Data

Which comes closest to your view on abortion: Abortion should always be legal, or should be legal most of the time, or should be made illegal except in cases of rape, incest and to save the mother's life, or abortion should be made illegal without any exceptions?

As you may know, president Bush said that he would not use a nominee's beliefs on abortion as the deciding factor for his selection of a U.S. Supreme Court justice. Do you believe Bush when he says he will not use an abortion test for his selection, or do you not believe that?

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