There’s a story in the Bible about a tax collector and a religious and political official, praying in public where many gathered. The tax collector, hated then as now, quietly asked for forgiveness of sins, but the official loudly proclaimed his superiority to those around him: “I thank God I am not like other people.” Replace people with “Republicans” and it’s easy to see that the Joe Scarborough brand of reluctant partisanship has been around for a while.
But a new cast of GOP characters is now vying for the top spot on a list of President Biden’s favorite Republicans, auditioning with their public denunciation of GOP positions. At the top of the list of those wrapping themselves in their anti-party pride is Rep. Nancy Mace, who has publicly pushed to eject the human rights issue of our day from her party’s agenda, to the delight of those who hope the GOP fails. Who needs Nancy Pelosi when Nancy Mace is around?
Consider her reaction to Nikki Haley’s GOP debate performance on the issue of abortion. Haley argued that Republicans should say and do almost nothing to protect life as they will not have veto-proof majorities (something Democrats don’t have either, but that doesn’t stop them.) In praising Haley’s remarks, Mace indicated that any statement opposing abortion is an “attack” on women, saying, “You cannot go after women and attack them because they make a choice that you don’t like or do not agree with because it’s a very sensitive subject right now.”
But isn’t talking about sensitive topics in the job description of a congresswoman or a presidential candidate?
Calling it “tone deaf” to defend life earlier this year, Mace offered her brand of eloquence when given a chance to protect preborn life in a recent budget bill. “We should not be taking this f-cking vote, man. F-ck … It’s an asshole move, an asshole amendment,” Politico reported.
Does she know that the Republican Party distinguished itself by taking up the cause of the vulnerable, leading first on civil rights and now protecting the preborn? The party firmly rests on the three legs of a conservative stool, sometimes called the Gipper’s Stool, a nickname for President Ronald Reagan, who understood the passions driving the base.
He understood that the GOP was made up of economic conservatives concerned about reckless monetary policy, national defense conservatives concerned about protecting Americans at home and abroad, as well as social conservatives concerned about how best to care for the least of these. Biden’s record of explosive inflation, world stage blunders when it comes to China and Russia, and social chaos should create cohesion for the party around winning themes.
Mace shows even shaky support for the rule of law in telling a CNN interviewer that the FDA should ignore a judge’s ruling to suspend the sale of deadly chemical abortion pills, which expose women to injury, infertility, death, and abusers especially when distributed online as the Biden administration has demanded.
“This is an issue that Republicans have been largely on the wrong side of,” she lectured. But Mace is not alone in her stinging attacks on her own party’s human rights support.
In recent years, a number of Republican politicians have undermined a pro-life future in America. Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins actively push for federal support for abortion, claiming they just want to “codify” Roe v. Wade. What they don’t say is that Roe allowed for abortion through all nine months of pregnancy, for any reason at all, and sometimes with taxpayer funding. That’s extreme.
Roe v. Wade’s existence allowed weak politicians to hide behind the Supreme Court, and it’s no surprise that the media love to report on the uncommitted now forced to show their cards. Fortunately, Republican legislators at the state level were made of sterner stuff, passing the kind of life-saving legislation that led to Roe’s end.
In the days ahead, Students for Life Action will be highlighting “Biden’s Favorite Republicans,” continuing our efforts to recruit primary challengers and support pivotal champions as we have recently in Virginia, Florida, Wyoming, Montana, Iowa, and Pennsylvania, to name a few.
Even Mace seemed to understand that primary risk as she co-sponsored the Life at Conception Act during her own recent election before taking a verbal torch to her party’s pro-life conviction later, showing her true colors.
Consistently the people who are bad on the life issue are wrong on issues across the board, which is why Students for Life Action has challenged those seeking the GOP nod for president to state clearly where they stand and to highlight the abortion extremism of President Joe Biden and his party. With the bills they’ve supported, Democrats at the federal level support abortion without limits, infanticide for babies born during botched abortions, the end of conscience protections for pro-life medical professions, and taxpayer funding for all direct abortion — not just when a mother’s life is in danger.
We will not forget the more than 64 million lives lost since 1973 or ignore those who would allow more of the same. In 2023 and 2024, we will educate voters on whether their elected officials did their job and protected the innocent.
When working for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, life must always come first. Hopefully, as 2024 comes closer, Republican lawmakers and candidates will stand strong on behalf of the entire conservative base. But if not, voters will have options.
Kristan Hawkins is president of Students for Life of America and Students for Life Action, with more than 1,300 groups on middle and high school, college and university, medical and law school campuses in all 50 states. Follow her @KristanHawkins or subscribe to her podcast, Explicitly Pro-Life.
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