Conservative House Republicans are endorsing policies to support mothers facing crisis pregnancies following the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade as they aim to round out their position as the “party of parents” ahead of the midterm elections.
The Republican Study Committee, a group of conservative members of the House GOP caucus, put forward a “Family Policy Agenda” Thursday that calls for reforming the foster care system, supporting crisis pregnancy centers, revising the adoption tax credit, and expanding postpartum Medicaid coverage.
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“Republicans need to position themselves as the party of families. Next Congress we need to focus on reforming the tax code to create more families, passing pro-life legislation, protecting parents’ pocketbooks, and giving them back control over their kids’ education,” said RSC Chairman Jim Banks (R-IN).
The proposal follows the June Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization that determined there is no constitutional right to an abortion, allowing abortion restrictions to go into effect in red states. The ruling put pressure on Republicans to respond to the needs of women facing unplanned pregnancies.
The committee suggests taking additional steps to support women financially during pregnancy by passing previously introduced legislation like the Unborn Support Act, which would amend the Social Security Act so that women could request child support during pregnancy from the biological father from the time of conception. It also proposes revising the adoption tax credit to allow more credit for those who adopt within the U.S. versus overseas.
Members of the GOP also argued that Congress should look at the foster care system to see how it could be “streamlined, improved, and made more evidence-based,” such as breaking down barriers for interstate adoption. Another item suggests reforms to Medicaid to allow states flexibility to extend the length of coverage for postpartum mothers.
“Overall, conservatives must continue to offer flexible solutions that are pro-mother, which is in stark contrast to the Democrats’ focus on increasing benefits for able-bodied, childless adults,” the memo reads.
Other proposals call for legislation that “ends abortion,” funds crisis pregnancy centers, and more.
Patrick Brown, a fellow at the conservative Ethics and Public Policy Center, said the recommendations were a welcome step toward clarifying what it means to be “pro-parent” but added that they required some fine-tuning.
“The RSC Family Policy Agenda includes a wide-ranging list of recommendations aimed at stabilizing and supporting the family as the cornerstone of a healthy society,” said Brown. “And building on the ideas included in this agenda will make the cost of raising a family more affordable, and strengthen the GOP’s status as the party of parents.”
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It remains to be seen how the proposals will stack up against Republicans’ other legislative priorities. A separate agenda from House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) called the “Commitment to America” makes no mention of policies like those in the “Family Policy Agenda,” instead pushing for legislation to address inflation, expand parental choice in schools, and confront Big Tech. It does, however, note that the GOP supports policies to “protect the lives of unborn children and their mothers.”
