"We care about young women. We care about young children. And we want to make it possible to choose life." Perhaps the mere fact that Sen. J.D. Vance -- now the vice president-elect -- felt the need to say those words was an indication that pro-life efforts to hold back the hand of the abortion industry in his home state of Ohio would fail come Election Day 2023.
In that same interview with the Catholic cable channel EWTN, Vance also explained the financial and social pressures that many single mothers feel when faced with unplanned pregnancies, believing "they don't have any other options." Lack of or insufficient housing shouldn't lead a woman to choose abortion. Same with money or career issues.
Vance's attitude is a far cry from the outgoing vice president's. Kamala Harris recently reminded social media followers that she was the first sitting vice president to publicly visit an abortion clinic. For Harris and the Democratic party, obeying Planned Parenthood is all but mandatory.
The death of former president Jimmy Carter ought to be a reflective moment for Americans who find themselves frustrated with abortion politics today. "There is a consensus within our Christian churches, liberal and conservative, that a developing fetus should be protected whenever possible," Carter wrote in his 2014 book "A Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence, and Power." About abortion, he said: "This is a difficult issue for me. In many ways, every abortion is an unplanned tragedy, brought about by a combination of human errors, and my Christian faith convinces me that a prospective parent should not make this decision unless the life of the mother is threatened or the pregnancy is caused by rape or incest. I accepted my obligation as president to enforce the Supreme Court ruling in Roe v. Wade that authorized some abortions."
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"Carter was a Democrat and pro-life," former Democratic Rep. Dan Lipinski wrote for First Things. "He never ceased to be either of those things, even as radical pro-choice -- arguably pro-abortion -- activists took over the Democratic party in the 44 years after the peanut farmer from Georgia left the White House," Lipinski continued.
Lipinski was primaried out of Congress by his own political party for being pro-life.
Still, in a 2015 interview in the New York Times, Carter emphasized a crucial challenge for Christians who support abortion policies: "I have never believed that Jesus would be in favor of abortion, unless it was the result of rape or incest, or the mother's life was in danger. That's been the only conflict I've had in my career between political duties and Christian faith."
It would be absurd right now to assume that the Democratic party would heed Carter's cautions on abortion.
Mary Margaret Olohan of the Daily Wire had a good idea in response to Harris's abortion clinic visit: "Would be awesome for JD Vance to visit a pregnancy center and candidly expose the lies that Harris and activists have spread about pro-lifers," she posted on X. The incoming vice president has the social capital to use his office to promote more humane approaches to unplanned pregnancies.
There are options other than abortion. And, yes, turning to Jesus would not hurt. The Jesus option would also make many of us more credible witness to the love and hope offered by the Christian faith. Carter knew that. We are all imperfect and he didn't go as far as some of us in the pro-life camp longed for, but he had the right idea. We should work together for life. And is there any doubt that he would want us all to help mothers, children and families flourish? Remind your local Democrats what Carter said about abortion.
(Kathryn Jean Lopez is senior fellow at the National Review Institute, editor-at-large of National Review magazine and author of the new book "A Year With the Mystics: Visionary Wisdom for Daily Living." She is also chair of Cardinal Dolan's pro-life commission in New York, and is on the board of the University of Mary. She can be contacted at klopez@nationalreview.com.)
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