Preserving Life Means Preserving The GOP

National Review Online: Giuliani Won't Be The Moral Leader Republicans Need

(National Review Online)  This column was written by Paul Kengor.

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“I believe no challenge is more important to the character of America than restoring the right to life to all human beings.”

-Ronald Reagan, January 1984

Yes, yes, I know: A President Hillary Clinton would be Armageddon to the pro-life movement. There is no candidate - none - in the history of presidential politics as radical as Hillary Clinton on abortion. To pro-lifers, she absolutely must be defeated.

That said, Rudy Giuliani is not the answer, though he may be a lesser of two evils on the issue of abortion. Acknowledging his promise to appoint “strict constructionist” judges, there are still other areas in which Rudy would utterly fail pro-lifers; and one particular area (upon which I will focus) that is significantly unappreciated and far-reaching.

A pro-choice Republican president robs Republicans of the moral and rhetorical leadership that their presidents have provided on the abortion issue, especially under four terms of Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush. This critical reality is not grasped even by many pro-lifers, who whine about how 20 years of Republican presidents have failed to overturn Roe v. Wade.

The reality is that overturning Roe v. Wade is not easy. It indeed starts with changing the courts. In the meantime, however, there is much the president can and must do to influence public opinion on the abortion issue - to make the moral case, to argue the justness of the cause, and to plough the ground to ready Americans for a seismic shift in abortion policy. To that end, both Reagan and Bush provided significant leadership.

As testimony to Reagan’s outspokenness, I have on my desk a 45-page single-space document of quotes from Reagan on abortion, printed from the official Presidential Papers. In these, it is clear that Reagan saw himself as duty-bound to fight abortion, which he equated to slavery in terms of moral outrage.

“This nation fought a terrible war so that black Americans would be guaranteed their God-given rights,” Reagan said to the National Religious Broadcasters in January 1984. He goes on:

Abraham Lincoln recognized that we could not survive as a free land when some could decide whether others should be free or slaves. Well, today another question begs to be asked: How can we survive as a free nation when some decide that others are not fit to live and should be done away with? I believe no challenge is more important to the character of America than restoring the right to life to all human beings. Without that right, no other rights have meaning.

Reagan anchored this cause to his faith, quoting the words of Christ: “Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not, for such is the kingdom of God.” He insisted that, “God’s most blessed gift to his family is the gift of life. He sent us the Prince of Peace as a babe in the manger.”

Reagan seized an occasion as high-profile as his 1986 State of the Union address to make this remarkable observation: “Today there is a wound in our national conscience. America will never be whole as long as the right to life granted by our Creator is denied to the unborn.”

In the event of election, a President Giuliani would not say anything like this, which would mark an unfortunate turn in the perception of a Republican president. We have come to expect a rudderless lack of moral clarity from Democratic politicians; indeed, millions of pro-life Democrats have permanently parted ways with their party because of its leadership’s embrace of death to the defenseless unborn. To accept the same from a Republican president would be hard to stomach.

Similarly, George W. Bush has been eloquent on life issues, including new areas like human cloning and embryonic-stem-cell research. He said in April 2002:

As we seek to improve human life, we must always preserve human dignity…. Advances in biomedical technology must never come at the expense of human conscience. As we seek what is possible, we must always ask what is right, and we must not forget that even the most noble ends do not justify any means.

Bush has sought to lead and even teach in this area, rather than swimming with the tide of an unethical, relativistic culture. “Science has set before us decisions of immense consequence,” says Bush. “We can pursue medical research with a clear sense of moral purpose or we can travel without an ethical compass into a world we could live to regret…. Life is a creation, not a commodity.” Bush fears a Brave New World “in which human beings are grown for spare body parts; … that’s not acceptable.”

Americans have been guided by their president on this essential moral question of the 21st century. They would not receive the same from Rudy. Quite the contrary, in his case, they would find reinforcement for the liberal Democrat position that unborn life is to be exploited for the selfish purposes of the living.

Never underestimate the power of the bully pulpit. The Great Communicator did not. The president can dramatically affect public opinion through the words he uses and the causes he embraces. Reagan and Bush both did this in support of innocent, unborn life. In so doing, they have given the pro-life cause both hope and a home: the Republican party. The Democrats, conversely, have slammed the door shut.

The president is the leader of his party. With a President Giuliani, neither of the two party leaderships would be pro-life. That would be devastating to the cause of life, a reality apparently understood by the principled pro-life evangelicals and Catholics threatening to stay home or bolt to a third party if Rudy wins the nomination - and, yes, thereby electing Hillary Clinton. Clearly, they have thought through the destructive implications of a pro-choice Republican president, and are trying to stop a train wreck before it happens. Maybe they have a point.

[mswolfestock]

I have some questions for anyone who claims to be "pro-life:" HOW MANY UN-ABORTED BABIES HAVE YOU ADOPTED? HOW MANY SINGLE MOTHERS HAVE YOU SUPPORTED? All of the anti-abortion people are the biggest hypocrites on the planet. They claim to have a lot of interest in a tiny clump of cells but once those clumps of cells become babies, the so-called "pro-lifers" are nowhere to be found. You hypocrites can tell me not to have an abortion when you show me your family full of adopted kids. I promise that I, as a pro-choice supporter, will never tell any of you hypocrites to have an abortion yourself if you don''t want to have one. IT''S ALL ABOUT HAVING THE RIGHT TO CHOOSE, REMEMBER? Oh yeah, you hypocrites are welcome to change your mind about legal abortion when your under-age daughters come home pregnant. You''re welcome to change your minds about legal abortion when your sister gets date-raped. You''re welcome to change your minds about legal abortion BECAUSE YOU ARE THE SAME HYPOCRITES WHO DON''T WANT TO FUND HEALTH-CARE AND WELFARE BENEFITS FOR ALL THOSE UN-ABORTED (BUT UN-WANTED) BABIES. YOU ARE THE SAME ONES WHO DON''T WANT TO GIVE WOMEN ACCESS TO RELIABLE BIRTH CONTROL. YOU CAN''T HAVE IT BOTH WAYS. If you hypocrites were in favor of access to affordable birth control for all women, then the number of abortions would be drastically reduced, and isn''t that what you say you want? RIGHT TO LIFE, YOU''RE A LIE - YOU DON''T CARE IF WOMEN DIE.

[oleander8]

If you don''t believe in abortion - don''t have one. What anyone else believes or does, is none of your business. Congress and the supreme court can pass laws until their bellies turn blue - it will not stop abortion - it will just make it dangerous.

[bm6005]

What a joke; what exactly would the repugs know about morals! Perhaps lying us into a war, having low life hypocritical congressional reps, not supporting S-Chips. I could go on and on but I have limited time on this planet!

[terrapin78]

Right-wingers lecturing on morals. What a joke.

[walt1944-2009]

The editors of the NRO feel that Giuliani is not the answer to keeping the Fascist Republicans in power as they would much rather have someone like the Great Emperor Bush II in charge. Their argument is that Giuliani is not pro-life, yet you have a wars going on which are certainly NOT Pro-life, AND the Emperor is continuing his vetos on SCHIP (original and revised) with the blind support of the Fascist Republican congressmen, which put millions of children in peril.

It appears that what the Emperor and the Fascist Republicans are saying is that we MUST HAVE babies, but the government won''t help to take care of them.

Go figure!

SIG HEIL, BUSH!!!

[macusweil]

GOP would like to see all the ''breeders'' kept in forced pregnancy such that they can field a large enough army of poor and former middle-class for their goals global mass destruction.

[fairandbal]

Ron Paul is the ONLY hope for this country and he''s failing to make inroads with the ''we love the Iraq war'' GOP party. Please everyone, we MUST encourage Ron Paul to start a third party campaign right now. It''s the only hope to save this country!!!!

[bm6005]

Strange, they don''t like abortion but love WAR!! This is why I have been an atheist. I''m a recovering christian!

[rayuk-2009]

Here we go again! The nutty NRO going against the grain. Over two thirds support abortion and want to keep it legal. Why must we listen or read anything these nuts have to say. They are a part of the cancer on America.

[cs4466]

More hypocrisy from the so called "right", who, as usual, could never be more wrong. Next!

[hypnotoad72]

Which GOP?

Lincoln''s?
Roosevelt''s?
Eisenhower''s?
Nixon''s?
Reagan''s?
Bush''s?

Each one is distinctly different.

[ultomatt-2009]

I see this sign all the time at pro-life protests...

Abortions kill babies

Now don''t get me wrong, I wish there weren''t abortions, but the reality is as follows...

Illegal abortions kill mothers and babies

That''s the reality. The fantasy is that you can stop it by making it illegal. That was the tacit agreement in Roe v Wade, that it is a sad reality of life that mothers and babies die when abortions are illegal, and thus it was made legal to, and this is admittedly ironic, save life. Abortions have been going on since the beginning of time, and they will continue, legal or not.

My mother told me, shortly before she died, that she had had an abortion long before I was born, and she nearly died, because she had to go to a butcher to get it done, and she suffered a serious infection from the procedure this quack did on her...illegally. I know she felt shame for doing it, but it was done, and the crime that was committed very nearly saw the death of the mother and baby...and this is going to be the norm for abortions when they''re made illegal.

I know there''s no way to bridge this gap, but this is about reality, and compassion for desperate young women who do desperate and unfortunate things. That is a fact. And the fact is, making abortions illegal again will only increase the dangers to mothers and babies. Making them illegal will NOT stop them from happening.

[jimbo554]

LOL. You gotta love this: "There is no candidate - none - in the history of presidential politics as radical as Hillary Clinton on abortion."

If that isn''t preaching fear to the fearful. I''d love to see a lineup of the people who receive this magazine. They''ve got to be among the 24% that still support Bush.

[elz523]

Reagan anchored this cause to his faith, quoting the words of Christ: %u201CSuffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not, for such is the kingdom of God.%u201D He insisted that, %u201CGod%u2019s most blessed gift to his family is the gift of life. He sent us the Prince of Peace as a babe in the manger.%u201D

If only you con''s would quote the words of Christ in reference to war or compassion for the poor. Instead you follow the rich, who trick you into voting for their economic programs that by design benefit them only, while they give lip service only to your dream of forcing your beleifs on others.

How terribly sad for you, your credibility and our country.

[fairandbal]

The GOP''s ground on Morality is all smoke and mirrors... Anyone who votes GOP in 2006 in reality supported the war and killing of tens of thousands.... call that pro life?

Jesus reality in teaching was in regard to social justice and the poor, not about protecting the super wealthy which is the sole regard of the GOP leadership. (remember the quote "it''s easier for a camel to pass through they eye of a needle...")
The ONLY reason the GOP uses the abortion debate is to capture the fundamentalist vote, they have no interest in actually abolishing abortion.....

[cbs_oliver]

Only the unborn are safe from the hate and murderous inclinations of the "religious" right.

There isn''t a single Republican candidate that isn''t profoundly spiritually corrupted.

It''s too bad, but they have taken a wrong turn and seem unable to come about.

[imnho]

I think that no matter who 1s nominated, Hillary Clinton will be the next president. The Iraq war has basically screwed there chances of retaining the whitehouse.

A lot of the prolife movement is focused on controling peoples choices. They are aginist health insurance for poor kids, but insist that they be born.
There against public edcation for the poor but they don''t like birth control. The would be more convinving if they adopt unwanted kids; but they don''t.

[jerr11]

I love Giuliani and his high moral values!!

"When you get tired of the old hag, hey, look for a younger chick to warm the bed."

Three wives, many more to go!

This man''s a s t u d!!

LOL

[kansas1946]

Yes, yes, I know: A President Hillary Clinton would be Armageddon to the pro-life movement. There is no candidate - none - in the history of presidential politics as radical as Hillary Clinton on abortion. To pro-lifers, she absolutely must be defeated.
****************************************

Oh, my God. Armageddon???? Please.
" in the history of presidential politics as radical as Hillary Clinton on abortion."

Talk about hysteria. In the history of presidential polics, really??? Is that maybe because she is a woman. These right wingers and just a hoot. I think Hillary wants to preserve Roe, just like anyone who is pro-choice. I would prefer Obama as president myself, but Hillary will do I guess, over some radical right-winger that wants to send women back to the alleys and coat-hangers.

[kansas1946]

"America''s Premier Site for Conservative News, Analysis, and Opinion." NRO
**********************

No wonder Conservatives are nuts if they read this kind of tripe. The current Republican party is not moral, nor are they Christian. Christains by their very name follow the teachings and philosophy of Christ. Now does that sound like Republicans to you???

[sparks224]

Sinclair Lewis said
%u201CWhen fascism comes to America it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross.%u201D

How did he know.

[sparks224]

Preserving Life(unborn only) Means Preserving The GOP

[brianbwb-2009]

Preserving Life Means Preserving The GOP

Preserving The GOP Means Destroying Life, The Record Speaks For Itself

International Brian Online: The Facists Calling Themselves Republicans Have No Morals, If They Did, They Wouldn''t Need Moral Leadership.

[doctor--o]

Abortion is an extremely complex issue. The solution is already there but it requires deep understanding of a myriad of complex philosophical,moral,ethical, legal,technical,medical issues. The list goes on.
It is a problem that ''one liner slogans'' only perpetuate.

The national political solution to the abortion political problem will not be found at the extremes of ProLife or ProChoice. Time has proven that clearly.
The solution is in the middle which both extremes see as a sell out. The extremes have framed the debate and that is why this diatribe goes on and on.They only offer simplistic solutions for simple minds and that just doesn''t work.

Simply put: Human life precedes conception and you will not find any black and white pinpoint of where life begins. Likewise, a woman''s control of her body is like all freedom - not without limits.

The issue is humanity and respect over the largest spectrum.
Limiting abortions to the first 10 weeks (approximately)accomplishes this and is compatible with the views of a majority of Americans.

Both extremes are incapable of seeing the truth shouting to them in the middle because they base the foundation of what they believe on untenable principles.

[mimi611]

Moral and Republican don''t mix. Warmongering Fools!

[afmca]

Preserving the GOP means preserving unending war. They may support the fetus, but only until they can put it in a uniform to get it killed for greater profits. Bush and his GOP lemmings are the anti-christ that are leading the world to armeggedon. Satan has found a washed up, drunken, drug addict rich boy in Bush to be his spokesperson while the most immoral and corrupt man since Hitler, VP Cheney, does the devil''s bidding. The evil they have unleashed may not be able to be contained since the Repubs and Demos in Congress are mesmerized by their own egos and are powerless to unite to fight this ultimate evil. There is absolutely nothing moral about the GOP, it''s Prophets for Profit, its christian lemmings, or the propagandists that write this garbage that people are actually stupid enough to buy.

[briannorwood]

Preserving Life Means Preserving The GOP?

I say we should just pull the plug on the GOP. It''s brain-dead anyway!

[rowdytexan2]

Good God!!! We have just aborted the lives of 4,000 of American''s finest in Iraq! That''s 4,000 that came into this world as babies! What about the babies they won''t get to nurture ever again? What about the babies they won''t get to have?

YOU CALL THIS MAN PRO LIFE!!!!

[eggy1620]

The GOP needs as many unwanted, neglected, abused, poor children as possible to be born. They are the ones who inevitably grow up to enlist in the army.

[bigsk8fan]

i can''t believe that any hypocrite republican is brining up the pro-life agenda. if they had any intention of being pro-life and protecting the unborn, then republicans would need to have control of the white house, congress (both houses), and most of the state governments. wait, they had this control through bush''s first 6 years yet did nothing to pass a constitutional amendment banning abortion. now that''s what i call republican hyprocisy.

[quatrops]

PRO-LIFE???? They could care less about "life".

THE BUSH/CHENEY NEO-CON CABAL INTEND TO INITIATE A WAR WITH IRAN AND NO ONE SEEMS CAPABLE OF DOING ANYTHING ABOUT IT!

What are the Iranian and Americans who will die in that eventuality: chopped-liver?

The Iranians, in the minds of the neo-cons, are infidels anyway so who cares.

Cheney and staff have surreptitiously engineered the "unitary executive" concept so successfully that neither congress or the courts have any ability to reign them in.

Face it folks, what we have in America, today, is a fascist dictatorship. These people are morally bankrupt.

Example: The President declares that we do not torture. But Bush, the "decider" is the one who defines torture. And, for a finale, HE''S NOT GOING TO TELL THE AMERICAN PEOPLE WHAT HIS DEFINITION IS!!!

Signing statements, and classifying any documents necessary for congress and the courts to provide oversight have precluded the possibility of any control over the executive branch.

In my book, and by dictionary definition, all of this constitutes FASCISM. The President is a DICTATOR!!. America is headed down the tubes.

[taddles-2009]

"Preserving Life Means Preserving The GOP?

I say we should just pull the plug on the GOP. It''''s brain-dead anyway!

Posted by briannorwood at 09:11 AM : Oct 26, 2007"


Yes please!

[quatrops]

A question for all "pro-lifers" out there:

Imagine, if you will, one of the Bush daughters, fueled perhaps by too much alcohol, has a careless engagement with her date one evening and later finds herself "with child".

Is there a doubt in any of your minds that such an eventuality would not end up with a clandestine abortion?

I suggest that fetus would be one bit of cannon-fodder a future neo-con war-monger would find it could do without.

[tejasdemo]

Republicans are complete morons and they should have their voting rights revoked. Nobody that *** stupid should be allowed to vote for something as important as President of the United States !

[crowepps]

There are one million pregnant women in Iran right now. Who is considering the right to life of THEIR babies during this administration''s enthusiastic planning for a preemptive war?

[rowdytexan2]

They may crow and posture about pro life...but every *** one of them knows that Roe v. Wade is a lot more about women''s right than it is about pro life issues.

They know such an attempt at reversal would be political suicide.

But they will pretend they give a ***** to keep the right wingers on THEIR right.

And since the fanatic right wing know that real thinking people think they''re full of ***...the republicans are their last hope to push their ridiculous ideals.