The Trump administration was, decidedly, the most anti-abortion in our history.
During his debate with Hillary Clinton in 2016, then candidate- Donald J. Trump graphically described the brutality of the abortion procedure.
A signal achievement was his appointment of three Supreme Court justices who support the Constitution as it was written, underscoring the sanctity of unborn life.
So, when former-President Trump’s spokesman recently said that, "President Donald J. Trump believes … [abortion] is an issue that should be decided at the state level," this writer was deeply concerned.
Earlier this week, I joined Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, for a meeting in Florida to discuss the important topic directly with the former president.
Frankly, our sense of alarm has been growing.
After last summer’s Supreme Court decision (Dobbs vs. Jackson Women's Health Organization) returning the power to defend life to the people, a number of Republicans heaved a sigh of relief.
Many of them were glad to see the end of the fictional constitutional right to abortion, but some seemed more glad to kick the life issue back to the states than take any further action.
Some were more concerned with political consequences than protecting the unborn — their eagerness to abandon the anti-abortion cause was striking.
That’s not what they were saying before the Dobbs decision, which returned to them the power to defend life.
Since the mid-1980s, the GOP has called for the right of the unborn to live to be recognized as the most fundamental of human rights.
Overwhelmingly, Republican lawmakers have supported a human life amendment to the U.S. Constitution and called upon legislators and judges in the states to respect human personhood in the womb, where life begins.
Science tells us that personhood begins in the womb.
For years, Republicans at the federal level have taken a stance in defense of life, and presidential administrations have defended it.
So what has changed now?
None of these proposals would prevent states from enacting anti-abortion legislation, whether protecting the unborn after they can feel pain, after a certain point in gestation, protecting American taxpayers from funding abortion, or anything else.
This writer was a state legislator in Louisiana for many years and authored a number of anti-abortion measures.
No one is more committed to a constitutional understanding of the limits of the federal government and the broad authority of the states than me.
Yet personhood in the womb is not just a state issue — it's he most profound of all human rights issues. It merits federal consideration — and protection.
During our meeting in Miami, Mr. Trump reaffirmed his commitment to protecting children who can feel pain and are actually sucking their thumb in their mother’s womb.
Our former-president's horror at late-term abortion and the incredible idea that some so-called "unwanted" children could be left to die after birth remains unchanged.
That’s why we met with him: To encourage the former president to stay strong on the issue of the sanctity of human life.
This writer can report that Mr. Trump has not changed his position.
He remains committed to his strong presidential track record of defending the unborn to the fullest extent of the executive branch’s authority.
During his recent townhall, at St. Anselm College in Goffstown, New Hampshire, he said of his anti-abortion record, "I am honored to have done what I did."
Mr. Trump noted several times during the event that pro-abortion-rights activists are radical. And radicals are unreasonable and never satisfied.
This is why, in last November’s elections, Democrats spent at least $320 million in advertising to attack the Dobbs decision overturning Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973).
The Biden administration has authorized nearly half a billion dollars of taxpayer funds that can be used to subsidize abortions and abortion businesses.
Republicans spend only a fraction of this amount celebrating unborn life.
I deeply appreciate the anti-abortion, pro-family policies that Mr. Trump’s administration advanced.
As we move into the 2024 presidential election cycle, my role will not be to endorse in the primary election but to work with the candidates, like former-President Trump, to ensure the issues impacting faith, family, and freedom are understood and advanced.
My focus will be ensuring that the sanctity of human life, upholding the true, God-given purpose of human sexuality, and the myriad policies that affect the family — ranging from religious freedom to tax policy — remain front and center.
It is encouraging to see that Mr. Trump remains committed to defending little ones in the womb. But how much more heartening it is to know the God who gives us the privilege of protecting them and their mother from the abortion industry.
That’s a high calling, and we’ll never retreat from it.
(A related article may be found here.)
Tony Perkins is president of Family Research Council. He previously chaired the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. Tony is the host of a nationally syndicated program, "Washington Watch with Tony Perkins." He is a pastor, Marine veteran, and former police officer. Read more Tony Perkins reports — Here.
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