Squeezed between two powder kegs of anti-abortion activity, most Iowans continue to follow presidential candidates around the state without much knowledge or thought given to the battles being waged to the east and south, just hours from their homes.

“I tend to see both ends of the spectrum as wrong,” said Lori Cavanaugh as she waited tables in a diner off Interstate 80 in eastern Iowa. “I don’t know what’s going on in the neighboring states and, honestly, I don’t care much. I believe most of us are somewhere in the middle and that our laws will continue to reflect that.”

Despite her initial response, Cavanaugh said she was “shocked” to learn that the Missouri Legislature passed a bill that reclassified Planned Parenthood and other abortion clinics as “ambulatory surgical centers.” Whether or not the change was done for safety or to circumvent a woman’s legal right to abortion is now the subject of a federal lawsuit.

Darren Eldermann, 24, a student and part-time convenience store clerk, said he was equally “stunned” to learn that thousands of anti-abortion activists had recently flooded Aurora, Ill., to challenge the opening of a Planned Parenthood facility there.

“I have a lot of friends who rely on Planned Parenthood for medical services like birth control and tests,” he said. “What’s worse is that I’m from Illinois and I didn’t know anything about it.”

Missouri Rules on Hold

The changes in Missouri require all clinics that perform five or more abortions a month to be registered under existing guidelines for “ambulatory surgical centers,” which mandate standards ranging from hallway widths to parking lot sizes to facilities for personnel. Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri joined with Dr. Allen Palmer, a St. Louis County physician, on Aug. 20 to challenge the new rules in court.

The plaintiffs contend the new restrictions would force closure of clinics in Columbia and Kansas City. Palmer, who performs early-term abortions, states in documents filed with the court that the same restrictions don’t apply to other private physicians who perform minor surgery in their offices.