I have said many times that I am a single-issue voter. I do not believe that being right on any single issue qualifies a candidate for office. But I do believe that being wrong on certain issues can disqualify a candidate. And for me, abortion is one of those issues. If a candidate supports abortion rights, then he is disqualified from my vote as long as there are other alternatives in the field.
Over 57 million people have been killed legally under the regime of Roe v. Wade. There is no question that abortion-on-demand is the greatest human rights crisis of our time in our country. That is why we have to have the singular focus of ending that immoral regime. For me, this issue transcends every other contentious issue in public life.
For this reason, defunding Planned Parenthood—the nation’s leading abortion provider—should be a priority for every pro-life voter. As Ross Douthat has ably demonstrated, there is no pro-life case for Planned Parenthood. And now we are learning that Planned Parenthood has been involved in the illegal sale of baby parts. The most recent video from the Center for Medical Progress was released earlier today, and it reveals that some baby parts were sold to researchers without consent of the mother (watch above). There is no question that Planned Parenthood as an organization is an affront to the sanctity of human life, and it is past time for us to cut off the flow of tax-payer money to Planned Parenthood’s abortion mills.
Prolifers must insist that politicians exhibit moral clarity on this point. Those who fall short of this moral clarity on Planned Parenthood deserve open scrutiny and opposition from the prolife community.
That is why Donald Trump’s recent statements on abortion have been unacceptable. He is leading the field of candidates for president in the GOP, and he claims to be prolife. Yet his remarks this week do not display moral clarity on the issue. Two items in particular:
1. Even though he recently called for defunding Planned Parenthood, he is now saying that he’s open to funding those parts of Planned Parenthood that do not involve abortion. But this is not a good argument. He’s a businessman, so I assume he understands that money is fungible. And that is why we cannot tolerate a single dime of federal money going to Planned Parenthood. But Trump argued otherwise yesterday. His remarks led the The Daily Beast to declare that “Donald Trump is Planned Parenthood’s Favorite Republican.” His openness to support Planned Parenthood in any measure is not a pro-life position.
2. Trump claims to be pro-life, but the position he laid out yesterday on CNN follows pro-abortion logic. In his own words:
“I am pro-life and I am strongly about pro-life, but I also feel that you go with the exceptions… I’m for the exceptions and the health of the mother and the life of the mother and so is Ronald Reagan for the exceptions, by the way.”
Did you catch that? He said that he not only favors exceptions for rape, incest, and life of the mother but also for the “health” of the mother. Anyone who knows anything about the legal situation on abortion understands that the Supreme Court has interpreted “health” so broadly that it allows abortion for any reason at any stage of pregnancy. Does Trump realize that he not only just made the case for funding Planned Parenthood but also for the continuation of Roe v. Wade? This is unacceptable. I suppose it is possible that he didn’t realize what he was saying, but ignorance on abortion politics is equally unacceptable.
This is a time for visionary prolife leadership, not for dithering and weakness in the face of Planned Parenthood’s mounting body count. We need to watch the videos, and we need to watch our politicians. There is much at stake.
18 Comments
Ian Shaw
Without the consent of the mother….how are they going to spin this one?
Denny, you have to know that Trump isn’t seriously going to make it past the primaries right? I mean, he’s appealing to the lowest common denominator and you don’t think the general public is “stupid” enough to push him through do you? (raises eyebrows) Trump openly says he gives to both parties when it suits his interest. That to me is a bigger issue. You have a candidate (alleged) who gives soley to serve his interests. That’s more damning about his integrity than his PP position, in my eyes. He’s openly saying he can be bought and buys for his interest. That’s terrible!
Rhetoric like his is why I did not watch the first or most recent debate. They’re like junkyard dogs in a room all fighting over a bone. The effort is so much better directed going someplace else. Shoot, the smartest person in the room on the first debate was Ben Carson and he won’t make it past the primaries (shame). He’s the most reserved, well spoken and non-attention seeking child there!
The poll numbers are up on Trump because he runs his mouth and he gets the attention. End of story. His stance on PP is just what Douthat stated, (to paraphrase, “you have good services with PP so you will just have to live with the abortion side of things”). Yes, it’s deplorable, but this is to be expected of a man who openly admits he gives money to people and things to make his life easier.
Denny Burk
I am no prophet, but I suspect his crawfishing on abortion is setting the stage for an independent run. If he does that, the GOP loses no matter who runs.
Ian Shaw
Agreed. Though I figure like 2012, his grandstanding helps the Trump brand and winning a primary for the republican ticket and dare-I-say winning a presidential election does less for his brand than just doing what he’s doing now to drum up attention for himself.
All the stuff on Hillary regarding the emails and private server and all the guys on that stage would rather shove each other. That’s why millennials/Gen-Y’ers are put off by politics, regardless of party affiliation.
Pingback:
Lauren Bertrand
As everyone here already knows, the left is cheering the ascendancy of Donald Trump. If he proved to be the GOP candidate, it will prove a shoo-in for the Democrats. Then again, I think Bernie Sanders is much the same sort of poison for the Democrats. Both of their campaigns will probably implode by the end of the year. Heaven help us if we have a Trump/Sanders run-off.
buddyglass
Question: are you against allowing abortion when the mother’s health is legitimately in danger?
Denny Burk
If the life of the mother is in jeopardy, I support any effort to save her life.
Paul Reed
Denny Burk wrote: “If the life of the mother is in jeopardy, I support any effort to save her life.”
Any effort? What if that effort entails someone else dying?
Paul Reed
Comments in moderation…figures…groupthink as usual, without having to answer any questions.
Ian Shaw
But the greater question is, of the total number of abortions PP performs each year, how many are legitimately due to the mother’s life being in jeopardy? Douthat showed in his article that the number of abortions to adoption referrals by PP is 150:1.
People do not want to believe this, but I’d wager dollars to doughnuts that the bulk, and I mean 90%+ of all PP abortions are not reflective of the mothers life being in present danger or will be in danger. Which prompts the question of, “why then?”
buddyglass
Oh, I agree on their being rare. At the same time, I think if you pressed trump on what he means by “health of the mother” he’d probably say “life is in danger”. Whether or not he means it is anybody’s guess, but I think he’d be willing to commit to that position publicly.
Ian Shaw
True. Trump’s using words that could get him votes either way.
Mike Lynch
I wish more Christian leaders would loudly voice opposition to Trump. Not just on this issue (though this is number one for me too), but on everything he is about. Check out Matt Walsh’s latest: http://themattwalshblog.com/2015/08/10/im-not-angry-at-donald-trump-im-angry-at-his-supporters/
He should not be leading right now and he would not be if more Christian leaders came out against him. So I’m glad to see you addressing the problem with this man. Thank you.
Drew
When I turned 18 in January 1996 and voted for the first time that fall, I made a decision in my life that Abortion would be the single most issue that would define who and how I voted for the rest of my life. I do not waver on this, ever. And I will continue to fight for this cause! Thank you, Denny for your avid and ardent passion for this issue as well! Let’s press on in the name of Jesus Christ!
Kent McDonald
I am with Denny on this one. There is a VAST difference in SCOTUS determination between the “life of the mother” and the “health of the mother”. The emotional “health” of a young mother who is “mortified” at the inability to wear a bikini at the beach should not hold sway over the Constitutional “right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” of the soon to be born new human.
Ian Shaw
Amen brother. Pregnancy is not an inconvenience or sickness. (The President may have said something like that in reference to one of his daughters in public I believe…) We all make choices and we all bear responsibility for our decisions.
Nena
Thank you for your leadership Denny. It’s really empowering me to boldly speak the truth knowing that many won’t like it. It’s really bothersome to see lies accepted and forced upon people who are coming from a place of ignoranceor arrogance. Do you have any wisdom or advice on how to go about speaking about these high button topics in the public square?
Pingback: