protestants figured that the abortion question was pretty much limited to Catholic church doctrine. They really had no position one way or the other. But in the wake of the Brown decision and desegregation they definitely had an opinion about civil rights, particularly in the South.

As they started losing that battle, they cast about for an issue that would galvanize their congregations and solidify their power. Voila; gay rights and, in particular, abortion. Jerry Falwell didn't make his first speech about abortion until five years after Roe. Then he founded the Moral Majority and gave Ronald Reagan, who had signed liberal abortion laws in California, his boost to the presidency.

They haven't stopped since, including Falwell, Jr's endorsement of Donald Trump. This isn't some deep moral question, though it is certainly framed that way. It is about political power, plain and simple, and the need for the GOP from Reagan through Trump to pull in a large voting block, even over a true Evangelical like the progressive Jimmy Carter. The topic is manipulative and cynical. Only true believers don't see through it.