COMMENTARY: Of all the Biden-era missteps he has reversed, Trump hasn’t touched this one.
In the longest, most expansive State of the Union address in history, President Donald Trump highlighted many moving stories of everyday Americans persevering in some of the most adverse circumstances. Yet, conspicuously, he did not once speak about the most under-addressed drug crisis roiling America. That is a mistake.
In post-Dobbs America, at least 1.1 million children now lose their lives in abortions each year — a 30% increase in a decade — while more and more women and girls are being poisoned and landing in the ER with severe complications.
The reason: mail-order abortion drugs. As fewer Americans die from opioids like fentanyl, abortion drugs have taken over as a leading cause of death.
More than a year into the Trump-Vance administration, the COVID-era rules of pro-abortion President Joe Biden still dictate that the drug mifepristone be bought and sold on the internet and shipped anywhere in the country — whether it is legal or not, without even checking if a man is ordering them.
The Biden Food and Drug Administration did away with commonsense safeguards to protect health and prevent coercion and abuse, like seeing a doctor in person. Of all the Biden policies the Trump-Vance administration has reversed, this hasn’t been touched.
Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., for his part, acknowledges that the Biden administration “twisted” data to hide the true dangers of abortion drugs. A Catholic, Kennedy says he prayed daily for years to be put in a position to make a positive impact on children’s health. But last fall, the FDA further expanded the availability of these high-risk drugs by approving a new generic version of mifepristone, and Kennedy claimed his hands were tied.
The pro-life movement has spent months imploring HHS and FDA leadership to simply reinstate in-person dispensing. The annual March for Life came and went. Meanwhile, the president himself suggested Republicans should be “flexible” on the Hyde Amendment, the bedrock principle that it’s wrong and illegal to force taxpayers to fund the destruction of unborn lives.
All of this comes at a political cost. Republican primary voters overwhelmingly disapprove of mail-order abortion drugs and back the Hyde Amendment. Fully one-third of the party’s most engaged base voters would be less motivated to get to the polls or volunteer if the GOP abandons the unborn. The notion of some GOP consultants, that pro-lifers are a “cheap date” who will keep showing up, no matter what the candidates actually do, is clearly a myth. This is a core constituency that needs to be reassured, from the top of the ballot down.
On the very day of the State of the Union, Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill was in federal court defending her state’s right to protect women and children in the law from the onslaught of unregulated drugs. She is also seeking justice for survivors of coerced abortions, like Rosalie Markezich, whose boyfriend ordered abortion drugs from California and pushed her to take them, even though she dearly wanted to keep her baby.
In defense of itself, the Trump-Vance Department of Justice insists they should wait for a year or more for the FDA to finish its promised safety study of mifepristone, which has already been slow-walked for a year.
That does nothing to help children who are dying and women who are being abused now.
Murrill explained the pro-life states’ predicament: “We believed the federal government would resolve this quickly, but they have not.” She is right — the states should not have to force the hand of a Republican administration to be pro-life. The alternative, to fail in their own duty to defend their residents and their laws, is unacceptable.
The Trump-Vance administration’s inaction has not made the problem go away; instead, they now face multiple lawsuits from Republican states playing out during a midterm election year. If they choose, they could end it today.
Supporting Louisiana are 21 Republican attorneys general and 60 Republican U.S. senators and representatives. Previously, 51 senators and 175 House representatives — the same people in the room last night — called on the administration to act.
The pro-life movement will never retreat. SBA Pro-Life America’s grassroots foot soldiers are in Senate and House battlegrounds, visiting voters at their doorsteps and investing tens of millions of dollars to reach over 10 million Americans by November. Republicans must not be afraid to stand for what’s right and popular. What they should fear is the self-inflicted loss of their most passionate base.
In his 2019 address, seemingly ages ago, President Trump boldly and courageously called out prominent Democrats for their inhumanity to the most vulnerable humans:
“There could be no greater contrast to the beautiful image of a mother holding her infant child than the chilling displays our nation saw in recent days.
“Lawmakers in New York cheered with delight upon the passage of legislation that would allow a baby to be ripped from the mother’s womb moments from birth. These are living, feeling, beautiful babies, who will never share their love and dreams with the world. And then, we had the case of the governor of Virginia where he stated he would execute a baby after birth. To defend the dignity of every person, I am asking Congress to pass legislation to prohibit the late-term abortion of children who can feel pain in the mother’s womb.
“Let us work together to build a culture that cherishes innocent life.
“And let us reaffirm a fundamental truth: All children — born and unborn — are made in the holy image of God.”
That is exactly the fearless voice America needs now. The president rightly says that, from the founding of our nation onward, every generation has stepped forward to defend the promise of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness for every daughter and son. It is our turn to fight to fulfill that most worthy goal — but we have a long way to go.