Activists are slamming former President Donald Trump for pinning the GOP midterm losses on the pro-life movement.
The former president took to his social media platform Truth Social on Sunday to argue the disappointing performance of Republicans in the midterms was not his "fault."
"It was the 'abortion issue,' poorly handled by many Republicans, especially those that firmly insisted on no exceptions, even in the case of rape, incest, or life of the mother, that lost large numbers of voters," Trump wrote.
Pro-life advocates told the Daily Caller, however, protecting the sanctity of human life should be a no-brainer for Republican candidates.
"Having a strong stance against the slaughtering of innocent children is fundamentally a conservative value," Savanna Deretich, government affairs coordinator for Students for Life of America, told the Caller. "If you do not have a strong pro-life stance, you are not a true conservative."
Live Action Founder and President Lila Rose called Trump out on Twitter for his comments.
"Trump is way out of line here on life," Rose said. "He does not have a pulse on where his potential base is — as many believed he has in the past. This kind of nonsense will be a losing political strategy for him."
Some pro-life groups stressed a number of candidates who were outspoken about their anti-abortion views did very well in the November midterm elections – Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Atlanta Gov. Brian Kemp, and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis – while others who lost competitive races skirted the issue during the campaign.
"Abortion proved to be a political loser for weak Republicans who failed to defend life," Shawn Carney, campaign director of 40 Days for Life, told the Caller. "But strong Republicans like Abbott, Kemp and DeSantis, who didn't apologize for being on the right side of science and history, were successful."
The national pro-life group Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America roasted Republicans who ignored the abortion issue at a symposium the morning after Election Day.
"While we have examples of pro-life GOP candidates who were prepared and went on offense, there are also examples of candidates who were not prepared and took the ostrich strategy: burying their heads in the sand and running from the issue, allowing their opponents to define them," Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the organization, said in a post-election memo.
Responding to Trump's remarks, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America repeated its position that vocal pro-life candidates win elections.
"The approach to winning on abortion in federal races, proven for a decade is this: state clearly the ambitious consensus pro-life position and contrast that with the extreme view of Democrat opponents," the group said in a statement. "We look forward to hearing that position fully articulated by Mr. Trump and all presidential candidates."
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