Andrew Walker: The incremental strategy

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Today is Tuesday, April 16th. Good morning! This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Mary Reichard.

LINDSAY MAST, HOST: And I’m Lindsay Mast. Up next: the state of the pro-life movement. WORLD Opinions commentator Andrew Walker says these are challenging times for those who defend life, but there is a way forward.

ANDREW WALKER: Last week brought crushing setbacks for the pro-life movement.

On Monday, former President Donald Trump released a video in which he stated that abortion ought to be an issue worked out in the states. By doing so, he signaled he would not pursue a federal abortion ban. Then, on Tuesday, Arizona’s Supreme Court upheld that state’s abortion ban by appealing to an 1864 law. That’s technically a victory, but some leading Republicans in the state are criticizing the decision. Some are even falling backwards into a functional pro-choice ethic because abortion is so politically flammable.

So, where does this put the pro-life movement? It’s in shambles. It’s no secret that post-Dobbs, we’ve had no singular, agreed-upon strategy. What’s worse, everywhere abortion has gone on the ballot, Americans have affirmed a strong preference for abortion. Abortion is a political loser for Republicans, many insist. And in electoral terms, they may be right. Too many Americans rely on abortion as the fail-safe for their sexual autonomy.

But I would like to suggest a strategy: pursue whatever pro-life legislation is politically possible in your context. This is technically what we would call an “ameliorist” perspective. Someone who wants to ameliorate something wants to make things better, step- by- practical -step. Unless opponents of abortion are willing to call for regime change, revolution, or civil war, then guess what? We are all incrementalists now. We can’t escape the hard work of step-by-step change.

Our final goal should always be to see preborn children protected under the 14th amendment. Many pro-lifers are already making that argument, though we are probably still a generation away from seeing it accepted fully by the courts.

Until then, let’s save as many lives as possible and keep working to save more. We are not begging for scraps from the abortion lobby. We are merely acting within the constraints of democracy—if only because democracy is the least worst type of government.

We need to stop posturing and do politics. We must do the actual work of mobilizing, supporting, voting, and reaching people with good arguments and accurate information. (This includes using videos, TikToks, podcasts, articles, books, and every other medium where people are.)

We should register our complaints with both Biden and Trump even while acknowledging that the two are not the same. Trump’s excellent Supreme Court appointments made it possible to end Roe, while Biden remains the hood ornament on the party of death.

That said, murdering preborn human beings is not a states’ rights issue. Why? Because no law that violates God’s natural law can ever be a just law. It is wrong to murder a human being at any stage of life. The Declaration of Independence insists that all are endowed by the Creator with certain inalienable rights—life the first among them.

It’s quite simple: Our nation knows the Dred Scott decision was wrong because it treated black Americans as less than human. Joe Biden and Donald Trump are also wrong to treat preborn children as less than human. Instead, they ought to extend them equal protection under the 14th Amendment. It’s the only morally consistent position to hold. Let’s all work toward that end, in Jesus’ name.

I’m Andrew Walker.

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