Amid high-profile losses at the ballot box since the overturning of Roe, it’s becoming increasingly clear that people seeking to protect the rights of the unborn need to get serious about the unbalanced nature of American politics.
At the 51st annual March for Life in Washington, D.C., enthusiasm for protecting the rights of the unborn was tangible. Thousands of young people were in attendance, with some accurately describing the moment as a “spiritual battle” and “civil rights issue of our lifetimes.” Yet what is being done to effectively hinder the slaughter of the unborn?
Other than waxing poetic about America’s “national creed” and “speak[ing] the truth in love,” as he did at the March for Life, what has Speaker Mike Johnson done to advance life-saving policies in the House? What have Senate Republicans done other than kneecap Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s protest of the Pentagon’s illegal policy subsidizing military members’ travel to receive abortions?
Besides endlessly investigating government weaponization, they’re doing nothing of significance. Congressional Republicans have so far refused to push back in any meaningful way on the left’s anti-life radicalism, opting to fund Democrats’ spending requests instead and sabotage one of the few people in the Senate working to protect the unborn and raise awareness of the federal government’s illegal support for killing them.
Yes, some Republican officials in both chambers have tried several times to pass legislation protecting the unborn, but those fall flat due to lack of support. Their Democrat colleagues, on the other hand, frequently pass widely unpopular policies. Congressional Democrats ruthlessly pursue their goals through the negotiation process, ensuring the satisfaction of their base. Republicans don’t.
Most Republicans at the national level appear unfazed by the federal government’s persecution of pro-life activists and unwilling to take a stand on the ever-expanding abortion industry. The median voter may be ambivalent about abortion, but the Republican base most certainly is not.
Short of restricting and banning abortion, Republicans can do more to support life issues. Currently, congressional Republicans have the power to protect the rights of health care providers to not perform abortions against their consciences, strip funding from federal agencies that fund groups such as Planned Parenthood, and support colleagues like Tuberville when they stand against illegal abortion subsidization. This can all be accomplished now, but Republicans refuse to act despite the demands of their supporters. (Perhaps their inaction and routine capitulation betray their apathy.)
Subsequently, actual work protecting pro-life interests has been largely forfeitted to activists and private organizations.
Solidarity HealthShare is a health care-sharing ministry that, according to its website, “provides an alternative way to fund health care costs while protecting and practicing” its network’s Catholic beliefs. Its cofounder Chris Faddis spoke to The Federalist about the issues facing pro-life doctors under the Biden administration. The American Board of Obstrecis and Gynecology “that credentials OB-GYNs came out and said that doctors who speak out against abortion or the abortion pill should be should have their licenses removed” right after the Dobbs decision, he said.
The federal government is not just on board with this but accelerating it. The Biden administration is forcing so-called “non-discrimination rules, which would include abortion services and gender services, [that] would force doctors, hospitals, medical professionals, and clinics to participate in all of these practices, or they won’t receive government funding. They won’t be able to participate in Medicare,” Faddis pointed out.
Dr. Christina Francis, CEO of the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, told The Federalist the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is trying to “require doctors in emergency rooms to perform elective abortions, which was never a part of the EMTALA regulation.”
Faddis and Francis’ organizations work to provide tangible solutions for pro-life Americans while elected Republicans twiddle their thumbs. This is why many are turning to state legislatures for results.
March for Life president Jeanne Mancini told The Federalist her organization was “laser-focused on growing our state [outreach and March for Life programs]” to educate more voters about the gruesome reality of abortion.
“We’ve had a lot of states enact [before 20-week bans], which they couldn’t do under the Roe regime. But we’ve had our fair share of losses, too,” she said.
Despite lamenting the left’s deceptive use of language to push abortion ballot referendums, Mancini remained adamant that “abortion is such a winning issue” and suggested Republicans need to hone their abortion messaging.
“There are so many positive ways to message about it … what we’ve seen in elections is that when candidates seem kind of nominal about this, so they bury their heads in the sand, and they don’t win. But when they lean into this, they’re competent, and they know what they’re speaking about, we win. So my advice would be to lean into [the abortion argument].”
Political action at the state level is effective at protecting the unborn.
“The overturning of Roe gave us the opportunity to really advocate for our position and bring people to our side. Instead of relying on the heavy hand of the judiciary prohibiting our ability to move the limits on abortion, now we can really advocate and bring the state legislatures to our side,” said Penny Nance, CEO of Concerned Women for America.
An incredible amount of work still needs to be done. The American people reject Democrats’ abortion extremism, but they too often don’t hear about it.
The most powerful government in the history of the world and its acolytes view abortion with religious fervor. Yes, pro-lifers need to raise awareness about how abortion kills the innocent while harming women, but the federal government and the left’s vast nonprofit apparatus are committed to eroding this awareness and the power of states.
Without meaningful action at the federal level, the abortion industry will continue to grow, and countless more lives will be lost. Red states cannot fight this fight alone.
Samuel Mangold-Lenett is a staff editor at The Federalist. His writing has been featured in the Daily Wire, Townhall, The American Spectator, and other outlets. He is a 2022 Claremont Institute Publius Fellow. Follow him on Twitter @smlenett.
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