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Op-Ed by Matt Kane
President Trump is inarguably the most pro-life president in U.S. history regarding abortion. During his first campaign in 2016, he pledged to appoint pro-life justices to the Supreme Court if elected. He delivered on that promise, which eventually led to the overturn of Roe v. Wade. He also became the first sitting president to attend the March for life rally in January of 2020. However, his actions, policies, and proposals demonstrate that he is pro-life beyond abortion. This blueprint laid by Trump has given the Republican Party a platform to reclaim the narrative in the post-Roe world, demonstrating what it truly means to be pro-life in every aspect.
Immigration
The illegal aliens who murdered Americans such as Laken Riley, Jocelyn Nungaray, Rachel Morin, and countless others wouldn’t have been allowed entry into the U.S. under President Trump’s immigration policies, meaning these innocent lives would have been spared. While Trump’s stance is clearly beneficial to the American people, it is also the most humanitarian approach for noncriminal illegal aliens. The influx of tens of millions has resulted in migrants living in tents cities throughout the nation, with no clear path to assimilate into American culture, and without a significant improvement in the quality of life they fled from. This also places a significant burden on local governments, and by extension the Americans in those communities, leading to a lower quality of life overall. Therefore, Trump’s perceived hardline stance is the most humanitarian one.
Economy
Economic policy decisions are not typically viewed through a humanitarian lens, but President Trump’s tenure was incredibly beneficial for all Americans, significantly improving the quality of life across the board. Trump has often touted record-low unemployment for virtually all demographics during his time in office, but this success was not the result of targeting specific groups. Instead, the America First economic agenda he instituted brought prosperity to all Americans, regardless of race, religion, or creed.
The common denominator in all of President Trump’s economic policies was putting more money into the pockets of American citizens. His Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was a multifaceted financial boost for millions across the nation, nearly doubling the standard deduction for individuals and expanding the Child Tax Credit. For businesses, he reduced the corporate tax rate from 35% to 21%, stimulating growth by easing financial burdens on many small businesses. This newfound financial relief allowed many companies to reinvest in themselves by expanding and hiring more people, creating millions of new jobs. Additionally, he also repealed the individual mandate provision of the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare), which functioned as a de facto tax on American’s who didn’t comply with the Obama administration’s standards. Looking ahead to a second Trump term, he has introduced several policy proposals aimed at improving quality of life, such as eliminating taxes on tips, Social Security, and overtime, as well as making car loans payments tax deductible. These proposals signal his commitment to once again putting more money in Americans’ pockets, giving them the financial freedom and flexibility to achieve a higher quality of life.
Military/Foreign Affairs
After abortion, Trump’s military and foreign affairs track record receives the most credit for saving countless lives, including those of non-American citizens. His Peace Through Strength approach averted potential conflicts, such as the brewing tension with North Korea when he took office. Despite cries from the Democrat Party throughout the 2016 election cycle that Trump would provoke war with the man he later dubbed “Little Rocket Man,” and warnings from Barack Obama that North Korea would be Trump’s greatest adversary, Trump achieved historic peace with North Korea. He became the first sitting U.S. president to cross the De-Militarized Zone (DMZ) into North Korea.
While he was an esteemed statesmen amongst foreign leaders of nations, he was merciless when it came to terrorist organizations. Upon taking office, he inherited a worsening ISIS crisis, which was all but eradicated just two years later. The liberation of Raqqa, the de facto capital of ISIS, was largely due to U.S. support. Air strikes and military advisory on ground operations marked the opening salvo in Trump’s systematic dismantling of the terrorist regime, culminating in the death of leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in October of 2019. Trump also eliminated other notorious terrorist leaders, such as Qaem Soleimani, an Iranian Major General in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), saving countless lives that would have been lost at their hands had they remained alive. Not only did Trump become the first president in nearly 50 years to not preside over any new wars, but he also led the U.S. in brokering peace deals through the Middle East, a region previously – and now once again – in perpetual conflict. Beyond peace deals, he ushered in an era of relative peace by cutting off funding to Iran, the premiere sponsor of numerous terrorist groups throughout the region, by withdrawing from the Obama-era Iran nuclear deal and imposing strong sanctions. As for his plans for future peace, Trump is remarkably one of the few U.S. leaders who is seeking to negotiate an end to the Russia-Ukraine War to stop the loss of countless lives, rather than pursuing a mythical “Ukraine victory,” that only prolongs U.S. funding and leads to more death.
Crime
President Trump has long been a supporter of America’s police force. After witnessing countless law enforcement officers being personally targeted for their actions in high-pressure, split-second situations, he has vowed to indemnify officers, protecting them from personal prosecution for actions taken within the scope of their duties.
He has also been a strong advocate for reinstating stop-and-frisk, a practice that deters rampant crime by allowing officers to stop suspicious individuals, question them, and search for illegal weapons or contraband. Both practices set a precedent that protects police officers and allows them to more effectively perform their duties, resulting in reduced crime and an improved quality of life for residents in areas where these policies are implemented.
Humanitarian Actions
Prior to his time in political office, Trump helped countless people rebuild their lives by providing employment, financial assistance, and even housing to those who had fallen on hard times. These admirable actions make the life-saving policies he later instituted, both figuratively and literally, unsurprising. In December of 2018, Trump signed the First Step Act into law, which not only helped reintegrate convicted criminals who had served their time back into society, but also required more humane living conditions for incarcerated individuals. His opportunity zones, a key component of his Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, aimed to assist economically distressed communities by offering tax breaks to encourage long-term growth into low-income areas. Perhaps most remarkable was his Right to Try Act, which allowed terminally ill patients to access experimental medications and treatments not yet been approved, which has already saved lives.
The Future of Pro-Life
For decades, conservatives have longed for a champion to deliver a victory for the pro-life movement, with that victory centered on the overturning of Roe v. Wade. With all attention focused on achieving that goal, little thought was given to the direction of the pro-life movement in a post-Roe world. President Trump not only provided that path but exceeded expectations, despite a vocal minority of conservatives bemoaning Trump’s abortion stances after delivering them their long-sought victory. The best way for the pro-life movement to continue to spread throughout the nation is to expand its definition beyond abortion. There is no doubt that President Trump’s efforts to remove federal abortion language from the federal government, which will undoubtedly save lives in the long term, along with his pro-life vision in every area will set the country – and perhaps even the world – on a path toward the most genuinely pro-life era in decades, if not ever.