How many of your friends who were conservative and skeptical of Donald Trump in 2016 finally made the decision to vote for the colorful, rich reality star when the choice came down to one issue: avoiding Hillary Clinton's judicial nominees?
I know; I'm one of those conservatives.
Don't get me wrong... there were plenty of reasons to vote for Trump in 2016 beyond Supreme Court nominations. Larry Kudlow and Stephen Moore had written his campaign's tax proposals. He vowed to enforce our immigration laws for the first time since 1986. And his victory would've driven the mainstream media insane.
All good reasons.
But, ultimately, for skeptical conservatives who were very wary of the once-proud Democrat from New York, the choice came down to Hillary's judges or Trump's.
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We weren't sure what we'd get from Trump, but we sure as hell knew what we'd get from Hillary.
So, we took a leap of faith. And this week, it appears, our leap has landed us very comfortably on the brink of a post-Roe America.
So let's have a bit of reckoning for those Never Trump dead-enders who still can't quite bring themselves to reconcile Trump's contribution to this near-miracle of jurisprudence.
We'll start with Bill Kristol.
In 1998, Vice President Dan Quayle's former Chief of Staff wrote a definitive op-ed in his magazine, The Weekly Standard, with the unambiguous title: "Roe Must Go." Kristol went on to champion the pro-life position, sell his magazines pretending to be the hero of the religious Right, and certainly sold plenty of over-priced Veranda Suites on his infamous cruises (Ahoy, Kurt Schlichter!) on the notion that he was the partner to all of the Christian and Jewish conservatives who heard a calling to support his endeavors if it meant an end to the evil practice of state-sanctioned baby killing.
So, who's surprised to learn that now that Roe has been overturned, Kristol is marching side-by-side with NARAL?
Alito hopes his draft is the majority opinion. But five votes may not be locked in to overturn Roe. If his draft doesn't stand up well to criticism and dissents, and the effects on the Court look bad, couldn't a couple of justices join Roberts to uphold MS without reversing Roe?
— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) May 3, 2022
Did he change his position? Is it politically expedient now to merely "ask questions"? Did he ever really believe what he claimed to believe?
Who cares? All we know is he claimed to want an end to Roe. We got the end of Roe. But, because Trump would get credit, he must oppose it... even if it means more carnage for innocent babies.
Ahoy.
Meanwhile, the way-more-devout-than-you David French, who uses his precious Internet space to attack Christians in America for liking Trump and hating CRT, is on the record from 2016 as an avowed Never Trumper because Trump couldn't be trusted on abortion.
In an article at National Review explaining why he joined Never Trump, he honed in on his skepticism over the abortion issue:
I have spent my entire adult life advocating against abortion and working to protect the unborn. I didn’t endure the taunts and jeers of my law-school classmates, work countless days and nights away from home to protect the free-speech rights of pro-life protestors, and defend the freedoms of the unsung heroes in crisis-pregnancy centers only to vote for a man who’s a walking Planned Parenthood commercial.
Clearly, he was wrong. Very, very wrong.
Again, I may have shared some of French's skepticism and suspicions over Trump's loyalty to the pro-life cause, but compared to what was guaranteed by Hillary Sanger Clinton, Trump was worth a shot.
French couldn't possibly see it, though. And now, Roe is gone, and French should be as public with an apology to Trump and his supporters as he has been in his criticisms in the past. Don't bet on it, though.
One suspects French ended up voting for Evan McMullin, who presented himself in 2016 as the only real, true, pro-life conservative in the race. In fact, McMullin audaciously taunted Trump for not simply stating he wanted to put an end to Roe during a presidential debate.
Why can't @RealDonaldTrump actually say the words "I want Roe v Wade overturned?" I'm the only pro-life candidate in the race #Debates2016
— Evan McMullin ???? (@EvanMcMullin) October 20, 2016
So, you'd think McMullin would be properly chagrined and apologetic now that Trump has, through his three Supreme Court nominees, ostensibly overturned Roe as McMullin demanded. You'd think that, but you'd be wrong.
Not only is McMullin not offering an apology for his past skepticism, he has, instead, completely reversed his "principles" and decided that Roe should not be overturned.
My response to the leaked draft opinion from the Supreme Court on Roe v. Wade: pic.twitter.com/sARuwGRLCE
— Evan McMullin ???? (@EvanMcMullin) May 3, 2022
You gotta love how this surrender to Nancy Pelosi and the blood-thirsty abortionists at Planned Parenthood is framed within the "As a pro-life Utahan" intro. "As a pro-life Utahan, I am repulsed by the most significant victory pro-life advocates have yearned for since the advent of legalized abortion on demand 50 years ago" is a hell of a political position.
They are never principled.
They are never consistent.
They are never faithful.
They are never honest.
They are never reliable.
They are never pro-life.
They are Never Trump.
Ahoy.
