The organization Catholics United has noticed something missing from the GOP platform — one sentence about reducing abortions.

They point out:

The draft platform, which the party will vote to ratify in St. Paul today, originally contained the following language:

“We invite all persons of good will, whether across the political aisle or within our party, to work together to reduce the incidence of abortion.”

The GOP’s movement away from bi-partisan efforts to reduce abortion comes at a time when the Democratic Party is increasingly embracing “common ground, common sense” means of addressing the issue. Last week’s Democratic convention included a call for abortion reduction efforts by pro-life senator Bob Casey, Jr., as well as historic platform language calling for “ensuring access to and availability of programs for pre- and post-natal health care, parenting skills, income support, and caring adoption programs.” In his nomination acceptance speech, Senator Barack Obama stated that “we may not agree on abortion, but surely we can agree on reducing the number of unwanted pregnancies in this country.”

The Associated Press first reported the Republicans’ decision to drop the language on August 27, the same day Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good released a groundbreaking study showing a clear correlation between increased economic supports for women and families and lower abortion rates.

Catholics United executive director Chris Korzen issued the following statement today in advance of the ratification of the Republican Party platform:

“The Republican Party’s explicit decision to turn its back on bi-partisan efforts to reduce abortion leaves the appearance that political posturing is more important than actually delivering results. Our nation is desperate for leaders who can transcend the politics of division and unite all of us around practical solutions to the pressing moral issues of our day.”

It’s worth pointing out, however, that the GOP platform is still staunchly opposed to abortion of all kinds and, in the last draft I saw, it said:

Every effort should be made to work with women considering abortion to enable and empower them to choose life. We salute those who provide them alternatives, including pregnancy care centers, and we take pride in the tremendous increase in adoptions that has followed Republican legislative initiatives.