Crossroads -- What's ahead for pro-lifers with Trump 2.0?

Michie · Nov 16, 2024

This complex question is addressed in a complex, fair feature in The New Yorker

Soon after becoming president, Democrat Jimmy Carter signed the Hyde Amendment into law — barring the use of federal funds for abortions, except in cases of rape or incest, or when the life of the mother is at stake.

When the Joe Biden-Kamala Harris administration attempted to kill the Hyde Amendment, a small — but symbolic — group of Democrats appealed to the elderly Carter for help.

"We are asking President Jimmy Carter (who signed Hyde into law) to please help us in saving it. We are so grateful for your humanitarian work and for everything you did for women and families in office," said a tweet posted Monday, March 22, by Democrats for Life of America (DFLA).
"America needs you again, Mr. President. Help us save Hyde," the group added.

Battles over the Hyde Amendment, and other issues linking tax dollars going to abortion providers, have continued, even after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade in its Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organizationdecision in 2022. That reality played a big role in this week’s “Crossroads” podcast, which focused on a complex, fair-minded Emma Green feature in The New Yorker: “The New Pro-Life Playbook — Under Trump, a new vision of conservative family policy is ascendant.”

Hold that thought, because we will come back to it.

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