ABOUT IS ABSOLUTELY RESTORING
ORDER AND THEN DOING BETTER
WITHIN THAT.
>>> NOW TO THIS.
SPEAKING AT THE RNC, PRESIDENT
TRUMP WILDLY MISCHARACTERIZED
JOE BIDEN’S POSITION ON
ABORTION.
>> JOE BIDEN CLAIMS HE HAS
EMPATHY FOR THE VULNERABLE.
YET, THE PARTY HE LEADS SUPPORTS
THE EXTREME LATE-TERM ABORTION
OF DEFENSELESS BABIES RIGHT UP
UNTIL THE MOMENT OF BIRTH.
DEMOCRAT LEADERS TALK ABOUT
MORAL DECENCY, BUT THEY HAVE NO
PROBLEM WITH STOPPING A BABY’S
BEATING HEART IN THE NINTH MONTH
OF PREGNANCY.
>> JOINING US NOW, SENIOR EDITOR
AT "THE DISPATCH" AND COLUMNIST
FOR "TIME," DAVID FRENCH.
HE’S OUT WITH A NEW PIECE
ENTITLED "DO PRO-LIFERS WHO
REJECT TRUMP HAVE BLOOD ON THEIR
HANDS?"
>> DAVID, THANKS SO MUCH FOR
BEING WITH US.
I SUSPECT THAT THIS COLUMN CAME
STRAIGHT FROM YOUR HEART,
BECAUSE, OBVIOUSLY, YOU HAVE
SERIOUS CONCERNS ABOUT DONALD
TRUMP.
I JUST WANT TO SAY OFF THE TOP,
I’M SO SICK AND TIRED OF PEOPLE
JUSTIFYING EVERYTHING UNDER THE
SUN BASED ON THE SINGLE ISSUE OF
ABORTION, AND THEY DO, WHETHER
IT’S THE CAGING OF CHILDREN,
WHETHER IT’S JUST THE VIOLENCE
DONE TO MADISONIAN DEMOCRACY.
YOU NAME IT, THEY ALL JUST GO
BACK AND JUSTIFY IT BASED ON A
SINGLE ISSUE, MOST OF THEM DOING
IT CYNICALLY.
>> YEAH, A LOT OF THEM ARE DOING
IT CYNICALLY.
AND YOU KNOW, AS YOU SAID, WE’VE
GOT A CULTURAL PYRO MANIAC AS
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
WE HAVE A HORRIBLY MISHANDLED
CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC WITH ALMOST
200,000 AMERICANS DEAD, AND
PEOPLE ARE SAYING, WELL, YOU
HAVE BLOOD ON YOUR HANDS IF YOU
DON’T SUPPORT DONALD TRUMP.
SO, WHAT I WANTED TO DO WAS TAKE
A STEP BACK AND LET’S JUST TAKE
A SERIOUS LOOK AT WHAT WE HAVE
LEARNED IN ALMOST 50 YEARS OF
PRO-LIFE ACTIVISM.
AND WHAT WE’VE LEARNED IS PRETTY
REMARKABLE.
SINCE THE PEAK OF THE ABORTION
RIGHT OF THE U.S., AROUND
1980-’81, IT HAS DECLINED
THROUGH EVERY SINGLE PRESIDENCY.
AND THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT I
THINK IS SURPRISING FOR AN AWFUL
LOT OF PRO-LIFERS, THAT IT
DECLINED DURING THE PRO-CHOICE
CLINTON PRESIDENCY, IT DECLINED
DURING THE PRO-CHOICE OBAMA
PRESIDENCY.
THERE’S BEEN A BIG CULTURAL
CHANGE, AND THAT IS NOT JUST THE
RATE, IT’S THE RATIO, IT’S THE
NUMBER OF ABORTIONS PER, YOU
KNOW, 100 PREGNANCIES.
THAT’S ALL DECLINED.
AND SO, WHAT I WANTED TO SHOW
WAS, LOOK, THE WAY YOU THINK
ABOUT PRO-LIFE ACTIVISM IS OFTEN
UPSIDE DOWN.
YOU HAVE THE MOST INFLUENCE ON
THE PEOPLE AROUND YOU AND YOUR
COMMUNITY AND YOUR STATE.
YOU HAVE THE LEAST INFLUENCE ON
NATIONAL POLITICS.
AND THIS WHOLE EMPHASIS ON
JUDGES -- WHILE JUDGES ARE
IMPORTANT AND JUDGES DECIDED ROE
V. WADE -- OUT OF THE NINE
JUSTICES ON THE CURRENT SUPREME
COURT RIGHT NOW, EXACTLY ONE --
ONE OF THE NINE -- A GEORGE H.W.
BUSH APPOINTEE, CLARENCE THOMAS,
INDICATED HE’S READY TO TURN
OVER ROE, ROE AND CASEY.
ONE OF THE NINE HAVE SAID THAT.
THE TWO MOST RECENT TRUMP
APPOINTEES APPLIED THE CASEY
STANDARD RECENTLY IN A CASE.
NOW, THEY WEREN’T ASKED TO
OVERTURN ROE, BUT THEY APPLIED
THE CASEY STANDARD.
THEY COULD HAVE JOINED WITH
THOMAS.
THEY CHOSE NOT TO.
SO I WANTED PEOPLE TO REALIZE
THAT THEIR PRO-LIFE ACTIVISM IS
OFTEN UPSIDE DOWN,
OVEREMPHASIZING THE NATIONAL,
UNDEREMPHASIZING THE PERSONAL
AND LOCAL.
>> YOU KNOW, WHEN I LEFT
CONGRESS, I HAD PEOPLE ASK ME IN
INTERVIEWS, WELL, WHAT WERE SOME
OF YOUR BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS?
AND I HAD BIG TAKEAWAYS.
THEY SAID, WHAT ABOUT ON
LEGISLATION?
WHAT ABOUT ON ISSUES OF THE DAY?
AND I SAID, ABORTION WAS,
WITHOUT A DOUBT, THE MOST
TWISTED, EXAGGERATED ISSUE.
IT BARELY TOUCHED US.
YOU WOULD CAST THOUSANDS AND
THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS AND
THOUSANDS OF VOTES.
YOU WOULD WORK AROUND THE CLOCK
ON CONSTITUENT SERVICES.
YOU WOULD DO SO MANY THINGS.
AND THEN IT WOULD ALL BE BOILED
DOWN TO A SINGLE ISSUE THAT
WASHINGTON REALLY DOESN’T HAVE A
HUGE IMPACT ON.
IT JUST -- I SAY THAT AS
SOMEBODY WHO WAS THERE, WHO WAS
PRO-LIFE, WHO SAW IT DAY IN AND
DAY OUT.
IT WAS A SIDE SHOW MORE THAN
ANYTHING ELSE, THE ISSUE, AS FAR
AS HOW WASHINGTON CAN CHANGE
THAT.
AND YOU’RE RIGHT, THAT INCLUDES
THE COURTS!
>> YEAH.
YOU KNOW, IF YOU LOOK AT IT LIKE
THIS -- IN THE LAST 20 YEARS,
THERE HAVE BEEN BASICALLY TWO
PIECES OF PRO-LIFE LEGISLATION
THAT HAVE GOTTEN THROUGH
CONGRESS.
EARLY 2000s, THE BORN ALIVE
INFANT PROTECTION ACT AND THE
PARTIAL BIRTH ABORTION BAN, BOTH
OF WHICH IMPACTED VERY, VERY,
VERY, VERY SMALL PERCENTAGE OF
ABORTIONS.
THE REST HAS BEEN AN AWFUL LOT
OF STATUS QUO, AND THAT’S
BECAUSE OF POLARIZATION IN THIS
COUNTRY.
THERE JUST HAS BEEN STATUS QUO.
WHERE THERE’S BEEN REAL ACTION
HAS BEEN AT THE STATE LEVEL, AND
THAT’S ONE OF THE REASONS WHY I
JUST GOT SO FRUSTRATED WITH
CONSERVATIVES --
CONSERVATIVES -- I SHOULDN’T SAY
CONSERVATIVES.
RIGHT-WINGERS.
>> TRUMPISTS.
>> IN 2016 -- OR TRUMPISTS WHO
SAID THE CONSERVEATIVE MOVEMENT
HAD DONE NOTHING.
IT WAS LOSING BEFORE DONALD
TRUMP.
IT HAD HUGE GAINS IN THE STATES
DURING THE OBAMA ERA AND IT
PASSED HUNDREDS OF PRO-LIFE LAWS
AT THE STATE LEVEL.
BUT AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL, YOU’RE
THEN TOLD ABORTION WILL STAND OR
FALL BASED ON DONALD TRUMP, AND
IT WON’T.
PLANNED PARENTHOOD HAD MOST
TAXPAYER FUNDING OF ITS HISTORY
IN 2019 UNDER DONALD TRUMP.
THAT IS NOT SAYING ABORTION
STANDS OR FALLS UNDER TRUMP.
>> SHAWNA HAS A QUESTION.
>> HEY, I’M JUST CURIOUS,
THOUGH, IT STILL HAS POWER AS A
GENERAL ELECTION OR A FEDERAL
ELECTION ISSUE, DOESN’T IT?
THIS IS PART OF WHY, YOU KNOW,
VICE PRESIDENT PENCE,
THEN-GOVERNOR PENCE, WAS PUT ON
THE TICKET IN THE FIRST PLACE.
THIS IS WHY HE’S PROBABLY STILL
ON THE TICKET, TO BE HONEST.
HOW DO WE SORT OF SQUARE THAT?
I UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU’RE SAYING
AND THIS IS REALLY A STATE’S
ISSUE AND THAT KIND OF THING,
BUT THE POWER IT HAS
POLITICALLY, CAN THAT REALLY BE
DENIED?
>> OH, IT CAN’T BE DENIED IT HAS
HUGE POLITICAL POWER.
THERE ARE GOING TO BE MILLIONS
OF PEOPLE THAT GO TO THE POLLS
AND HOLD THEIR NOSE AND VOTE FOR
DONALD TRUMP FOR ONE REASON AND
ONE REASON ONLY AND THAT IS
ABORTION.
WHAT I’M SAYING IS THEY HAVE A
MISPERCEPTION OF THE POWER OF
THE UNITED STATES OVER THIS
ISSUE.
NOT THAT THERE ISN’T A
PERCEPTION.
AND NOT EVEN THAT THE FEDERAL
ELECTION DOESN’T HAVE
IMPORTANCE.
I’M NOT SAYING THAT AT ALL.
BUT I’M SAYING PEOPLE COMPLETELY
MISPERCEIVE THE IMPORTANCE.
IT IS MORE IMPORTANT IMPERIALLY
WHAT YOU DO TO COMBAT -- IF
YOU’RE PRO-LIFE, WHAT YOU DO TO
COMBAT ABORTION AT THE STATE AND
LOCAL LEVEL THAN AT THE NATIONAL
LEVEL.
BUT THERE WILL BE MILLIONS OF
PEOPLE, I KNOW PEOPLE -- AS AN
IVAN GAL CAL CHRISTIAN, I KNOW
REASON WHY THEY’RE VOTING FOR
DONALD TRUMP IS THEY BELIEVE
THEY’LL HAVE BLOOD ON THEIR
HANDS OF UNBORN CHILDREN IF THEY
DON’T.
WHAT I’M SAYING, AS I DID IN
THIS PIECE, IS I TRIED TO TAKE A
40-PLUS LOOK AS WHERE HAS
PROGRESS BEEN MADE, WHAT IS MOST
EFFECTIVE, WHERE CAN YOU
ACTUALLY MAKE AN IMPACT.
AND TIME AND TIME AGAIN IT COMES
UP THAT YOU DON’T MAKE THAT MUCH
