NATIONAL TRIAGE
A common sense response to conservative foolishness regarding Trump's abortion stance
In June 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court handed pro-life Americans the biggest win in 50 years. By overturning Roe v. Wade, federal protections for abortion were officially and instantly terminated, and the issue of abortion and the legislative dogfight often attached to it, was brought back to the sovereign states.
Such a win for pro-life advocates cannot be overstated. Overturning Roe v. Wade was, to me, an impossibility. When I talked to Christians or read editorials on the subject, the concept of undoing the catastrophic federal overreach of that ruling (and its subsequent reaffirmation in Planned Parenthood v. Casey) was never spoken about in such a way where I ever got the feeling that Christians or pro-life activists believed that it would really be overturned.
They had resigned themselves to that defeat…until three conservative-leaning Supreme Court justices were appointed by President Donald Trump during his administration. Those three justices tipped the scales just enough to deliver a big win for the unborn and for the faith community – a victory that was facilitated by a man who knows a thing or two about brokering impossible deals and delivering big on campaign promises.
Since 2022, Republican-led states have leaned toward stricter abortion regulation, while Democrat states like California have sought to solidify their position as “abortion sanctuary states.”
Indeed, abortion has become a state issue, and that is a good thing, because working toward eliminating abortion starts at home, at the local level, and at the state level. With the federal battle out of the way, the fight has become more effective and more concentrated. Pro-life activists can do battle within their communities and with their state government rather than facing down the broad spectrum of the federal regime. Better to be on even footing than to throw sticks and stones at an iron curtain of tyranny, after all.
Despite the pro-life movement’s big victories over the past couple of years – all thanks to a man named Donald Trump – the conservative and faith-based commentary community in the media have made it their mission in life to trash Trump because he refuses to commit political suicide on the issue of abortion and therefore doom the country to destruction, economic ruin, and potential worldwide nuclear war.
The facts: Americans don’t support an abortion ban, and here’s why
To be clear, I am a hardcore pro-life Christian. I do not support abortion in any form, and I have written about my pro-life beliefs often, including here in this substack column. The gritty truth, however, is that my own stance on the subject represents a threadbare minority of voting Americans.
Let’s look at the facts. A 2023 Gallup poll found that the majority of Americans believe that abortion should be legal to some degree. 51 percent of Americans agree that abortion needs some regulation and restrictions, but only 13 percent believe that abortion should be illegal in all circumstances. 69 percent of Americans today believe that abortion should be legal during the first trimester of pregnancy – but 70 percent of Americans believe that abortions in the third trimester should be illegal.
In sum, Americans today, like it or not, broadly support abortion, although many do not support late-term abortion. The Christian and the logical thinker would, of course, argue that a baby is a baby at any stage, and therefore, murder is murder. I agree with this.
However, most Americans do not understand this, and that is why they broadly support the legal termination of pregnancy. The question, I think, that is more alarming here is this: WHY do the vast majority of American citizens – which includes a hefty number of identifying Christians and Catholics – support abortion?
Quite simply, education, academia, media, and our leftist politicians have perfected their messaging on the issue of abortion. It is rarely called abortion, in fact. It has been renamed (and any good Neo-Marxist revolution focuses on the language of society) as women’s rights. It sounds much less invasive that way, doesn’t it? My body, my choice! On its face, it sounds like such a nice phrase, but Christians, conservatives, the American church, and the pro-life movement itself are so tepid and weak in their messaging and communication on the topic of abortion, that once the progressive feminist movement and the media sank their teeth into the issue, they ran away with it and took the country with them.
To regain momentum on abortion messaging, conservatives and Christians must approach the subject with clear, concise, and smart messaging – something that is not currently happening.
Simply pontificating about abortion on X or Facebook is not enough – what are the churches and our communities actually doing about it? Chances are, not much.
Another fact: emotional conservatives tend to use leftist logic
Amid conservative commentators’ vein-popping tirade against Trump’s declaration this week that abortion is a states’ rights issue (he is absolutely, constitutionally correct), one thing that really stood out to me is that their reasoning is no different than the far left.
Conservatives would like to see Trump commit to signing a federal blanket ban on abortion. Number one, a bill like that would never make it through the House and Senate. Number two, even if it did, federally codifying abortion restrictions utilizes the same logic of leftists who argued that there should be broad federal protections for abortion.
So, which is it? Does the federal government have the power to regulate abortion or restrict it? Pro-life advocates long fought against Roe v. Wade by arguing that it was illegal for the government to guarantee unilateral abortion access in all 50 states. In essence, they were arguing that it was a states’ right issue.
Suddenly, now that Trump is involved, everything has changed, and they are demanding that he commit to issuing a theocratic edict that blanket bans abortion. While the idea is nice for Christians, let’s face it: we don’t live in a theocracy. We live in a constitutional republic which allows us to advocate for what we believe is right. In essence: if you don’t like abortion (and you shouldn’t), get to work in your state and advocate for tougher restrictions.
It is alarming to me that some conservatives are willing to use the same arguments as leftists and completely bypass a thoughtful, constitutional process simply to “win.” Why fight like that when we can fight smarter, stronger, and more effectively? We have the moral high ground and the legal high ground - why not use it instead of screaming for federal overreach?
More facts: Here's what Trump actually said, and he’s right
When Trump launched his campaign for president in 2015, he was very clear that he was a pro-life president who supported the three exceptions: rape, incest, and the life of the mother. I understand that not everyone agrees with this, and that’s okay. But it’s a start, and Christians would be wildly remiss to ignore the fact that Trump not only delivered for the faith community by setting up a Supreme Court that terminated Roe v. Wade, but he was also the only president who ever attended the March for Life rally in Washington, D.C.
He has been consistent and unchanging about his position on this issue, and in Monday’s latest policy stance announcement, he did not change it.
In his policy video, Trump said, “It must be remembered that the Democrats are the radical ones on this position because they support abortion up to and even beyond the ninth month – the concept of having an abortion in the later months and even execution after months…it unacceptable and almost everyone agrees with that.”
He added, “This 50-year battle over Roe v. Wade took it out of the federal hands and brought into the hearts, minds and vote of the people of each state was really something. Now, it’s up to the states to do the right thing.”
Could it be any clearer? He is telling the country: if you want abortion eliminated in your state, the responsibility is up to YOU.
Trump is a savvy guy and a great leader – he recognizes that if Republicans do not win the 2024 general election, the country is doomed to fall into global war. Not only that, but with millions of unvetted, single, military-aged males flooding across our southern border, we are also perched on the brink of cataclysmic domestic violence.
At this moment in history, he is applying what I like to call a national triage. Abortion is not the most pressing issue of the moment on a national scale. In fact, it’s not a federal issue at all, since Roe v. Wade has been axed. Abortion is a pressing issue for our states – namely, abortion should be attacked head-on by pro-life advocacy groups, faith groups, and churches on the state level.
Trump is worried about three big things: World War III (with China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran on the rise, this is an obvious and viable threat), restarting the U.S. economy (to avoid economic collapse and depression), and sealing the southern border (to protect our people from terrorism, drug cartels, and human traffickers).
In his policy video on Monday, Trump explained, “You must follow your heart on this issue [abortion], but remember you must also WIN elections to restore our culture and, in fact, to save our country, which is currently, and very sadly, a nation in decline.”
He’s right. As conservatives blast their egocentric opinions on social media and trash Trump for not committing to sign a federal ban on abortion, they are boosting the chances of Joe Biden’s candidacy – Biden, who is an abortion radical who supports abortion-on-demand and late-term abortion.
Turning Point USA President Charlie Kirk wisely posited his reaction to Trump’s statement on X on Monday afternoon:
“Masterful statement by Trump on abortion. Pro-Life leaders I've spoken to are very happy. Trump is clear on the moral position of abortion, reiterated he is glad Roe was repealed, and then sends it back to the states for this battle to be waged. Major credit to President Trump for resisting the forces who waged an aggressive lobbying effort for him to declare an arbitrary week deadline. He trusted his instincts and allows the Pro-Life movement a huge opportunity to continue this human rights issue in the states. He's 100% right. If we don’t win elections, we get zero of what we want. Without political power Democrats will make abortion the law of the land.”
So-called conservative Christians have once again outed themselves as unserious people who are not, in any way, actually committed to finding unity with their fellow countrymen and focusing on saving the country.
Kirk is right: without winning elections, we will, indeed, get ZERO of what we believe is right. Democrats will actually codify abortion, and we will have lost all progress and traction on the issue. And guess what? We will never regain that lost ground again.
Because, let’s face it, if our nation goes up in flames, we won’t even have the chance to advocate against abortion, because we will be living in a third-world country, crushed by tyrants, and swallowed whole by foreign invasion and globalism.
In the end, what weak and blustering conservative loudmouths lack is the ability to think strategically. These are people who fail to understand that we are in a war for the soul and the liberty of our nation, and that when you are in a war, you must make difficult choices in the interim so that you can win later.
“Wars may be fought with weapons, but they are won by men,” said General George Patton. “It is the spirit of the men who follow and of the man who leads that gains the victory.”
The bottom line is this: abortion is not on the federal ballot because we already voted on it in 2016 by electing Donald Trump. In turn, he fulfilled his obligation by giving us three Supreme Court justices who killed Roe v. Wade and gave we the people their power back.
Trump has done his part. Are you – or his malicious critics – willing to do the same?
Resources:
Watch Trump’s entire policy video for yourself HERE.
Read my editorial from last fall that lays out the facts about why Trump was (and is) the most pro-life president in modern history. Read HERE.