During his first run for president in 2016, then-candidate Donald Trump made the pro-life message a core tenet of his campaign. This encouraged Republican voters to support him against Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton. Voters knew the 45th president of the United States would appoint at least one justice to the Supreme Court. Trump’s promise to the pro-life movement meant the country was closer than ever to overturning Roe v. Wade.
In his first term, Trump nominated Justices Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett. Their appointments eventually spelled the end for Roe. But since then, Trump’s words and actions on the issue have been a major disappointment.
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In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of SBA Pro-Life America, didn’t hold back: “Trump is the problem. The president is the problem.” When it comes to the issue of abortion, Dannenfelser is correct. But this truth doesn’t sit well with the administration or the uncritical supporters who rubber-stamp everything this president does.
According to White House spokeswoman Allison Schuster, “Since his first term, the President has been a proven leader in the pro-life movement and he will continue to champion these policies to protect the sanctity of life.” Schuster says Trump is “the most pro-life and pro-family president in history.”
These talking points work well to appease committed Trump Republicans and mildly engaged pro-life voters. For anyone paying more attention and deeply invested in what an actual post-Roe America should look like, there is great cause for concern.
Dannenfelser and other pro-life leaders are rightly bothered with this administration’s utter laziness. Among other things, they hoped that the administration would roll back Biden-era rules allowing the abortion pill, mifepristone, to be prescribed online and shipped through the mail. The regulations have allowed clinicians in states with lax abortion laws, such as New York, to prescribe and send pills to women in states with strict abortion bans, such as Mississippi. The Food and Drug Administration has instead left those rules intact.
The FDA, led by Commissioner Marty Makary, is dragging its feet in reviewing a generic version of mifepristone. On top of that, this administration’s Justice Department has reportedly “asked courts to pause or completely dismiss lawsuits from Republican state attorneys general over access to mifepristone.”
How is any of this the mark of a pro-life administration? It’s nearly identical to what a Democratic Party president would do.
In response to this poor leadership, SBA Pro-Life America will spend a reported $160 million in support of pro-life candidates in the 2026 midterm elections and next presidential election cycle. These candidates must be committed to unapologetic pro-life action on both the state and national levels.
In case it was not clear before, Trump is opportunistically pro-life. His history concerning the abortion issue is one that shifts according to popularity and his base of support. Trump was the executive catalyst in the overturning of Roe and Planned Parenthood v. Casey. Dobbs remains a pro-life victory. But the president and his administration point to that as a mark of pro-life bona fides while behaving in ways fundamentally inconsistent with that claim.
Credit should be given to Dannenfelser and other outspoken pro-life Americans for standing up to the hypocrisy.
“It’s very clear that the issue is perceived as the third rail, and you just have to stay away from it,” Dannenfelser said of how she believes the White House handles the topic. “You cannot utter the A-word.”
Dannenfelser tried calling Trump earlier this year after he called for “flexibility” on the Hyde Amendment banning federal funds for abortion.
She said she was sent to voicemail.
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Trump’s biggest supporters may say pro-life Americans are ungrateful for his part in the overturning of Roe. This is simply not true. We recognize and are thankful for his involvement.
But past victories cannot be a shield for present inaction. The U.S. is not a pro-life nation. That evolution will take years. It requires committed pro-life leaders at the national level, leaders who will not rest on previous achievements to cover present-day wrongs. Right now, the Trump administration is failing this test.
