Donald Trump and J.D. Vance’s recent abortion comments have stung pro-life voters, long considered a major pillar of Trump’s base. Right on cue, pro-life activists and pundits quickly denounced Trump and signaled their refusal to vote for him.
Responses like these are understandable. Abortion is a grave moral evil, not just according to biblical teaching but also by the standards of natural law. Trump, and especially Vance, a Catholic convert, should know better. It’s one thing for their campaign to table the abortion fight for another day, recognizing the sad reality that it’s political kryptonite. It’s another thing entirely to embrace the language and goals of abortion advocates.
But at the same time, the idea of “punishing” Trump and Vance for their stances either by abstaining or by voting third party is not only morally incorrect but politically suicidal. Not only does it wrongly suggest that a Trump administration would be anywhere near as disastrous for the pro-life cause as a Harris one, but it attributes to the pro-life voting bloc a leverage it simply doesn’t have.
Unpopular positions — like a national abortion ban — are not made popular by major parties steamrolling them into legislation. In a representative government, this tactic simply alienates voters. Such positions must be successfully advanced in intellectual and cultural spheres before they can have political viability. It is hardly the fault of Trump or Vance, as disappointing as their recent statements have been, that we have failed to achieve this prerequisite for political
