President Trump will speak Friday at the far-right March for Life. This makes him the first sitting president to speak at the rally in the 45 years the March has existed. Last year the Trump administration sent Vice President Pence to speak at the rally—another first.
Trump will address the anti-abortion protesters from the Rose Garden, which is the traditional location for policy announcements and diplomatic speeches. Trump previously endorsed “some form of punishment” for women who seek abortions.
Trump’s Shift on Abortion
Trump, who once called himself pro-choice, has worked to roll back abortion rights from the moment he took office. The administration promptly reinstated the Mexico City policy, sometimes known as the global gag rule. The policy prohibits health clinics that receive U.S. funds from talking about or providing abortion—even if the organizations do so with their own funds. It’s a move analysts say will result in thousands more maternal deaths, in the midst of an already escalating maternal healthcare crisis.
In the U.S., abortion clinics increasingly face a regulatory climate that makes abortion less accessible. Research shows these policies don’t stop abortion. They do, however, make it more expensive, and increase the likelihood that women will delay their abortions until the second trimester.
Trump and Republicans: Pro-Life, But Not for Children
Word that Trump would speak at the March for Life came amid heated debate about funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). This state program, which provides health coverage for 9 million low and moderate-income children, has long been targeted by “pro-life” Republican leaders. In September, funding for the program expired. And last year, they allowed a funding deadline to expire amid bickering over changes to the Affordable Care Act. A short-term funding extension temporarily prolonged the program, but funding is about to end again.
Children could die as a result. Without the funding, even children whose lives depend on health care will not have access to basic medical services. While Republicans advocate for fetuses with policies that could kill women, they’re content to let living, breathing kids die.
The government will run out of money Friday, spurring a government shutdown. In an effort to get Democrats to sign onto a number of Republican budget policies, Republicans have added CHIP funding to a slate of other legislation. They’ve effectively weaponized children’s health care—and the lives of children who depend on it—against Democrats.
The Abortion Fight Heats Up
As Republicans repeatedly demonstrate their lack of concern for living children, they continue to pass draconian anti-abortion legislation. Abortion clinics in Ohio may soon be required to bury aborted remains. The Ohio Senate this week passed legislation mandating burial or cremation and requiring abortion clinics to pay for these procedures. It’s unclear how abortion clinics are to manage the earliest abortions, which produce no body.
But Republicans remain undeterred by logic, by the needs of women, or by the fact that abortion regulations can kill women. The hope is that a Republican-packed Supreme Court will eventually hear a case stemming from a new abortion law. A world in which Trump’s dream of punishing women for seeking abortions could be just a lawsuit and a Supreme Court justice away.