Obama abortion pledge
Barack Obama, the US President, promised Pope Benedict XVI that he would try to limit the number of abortions allowed in the USA.
At a meeting at the Vatican in July during the G20 Summit in Italy, President Obama discussed abortion – a highly charged moral and political issue in the USA – with the Pope.
Democrats have traditionally been in favour of allowing abortions, while pro-life groups and Catholic groups in the US have tended to support the anti-abortion policies of the Republican party.