Where the Future of Abortion Access Lies Trump, for his part, has taken policy advice in the past from a group of anti-abortion activists and attorneys, and Elaine reminded me that they will seek to influence his policy decisions if he wins. A major focus of some anti-abortion activists’ efforts, as Elaine has written, would … Read more
Trump, GOP scramble to contain abortion ‘earthquake’ And the problem for Republicans doesn’t stop at abortion, but extends to the possible curtailment of IVF. A constellation of right-leaning groups, from former Vice President Mike Pence’s Advancing American Freedom to the Heritage Foundation, have mounted efforts to restrict the widely popular procedure. Read more at Politico … Read more
Trump promises a ‘deal’ on abortion that will please everyone. It likely doesn’t exist. The presumptive Republican nominee, who has pledged to make a statement on abortion this week, has said for months that if elected he would “come together with all groups” and “negotiate something” that would “make both sides happy,” suggesting that “15 … Read more
These radical social conservatives could define Trump’s second term. Read more at Vox
Anti-abortion advocates are reading between the lines What to know about Trump’s abortion announcement The easiest way for Trump to move the needle on abortion policy during a second term is through executive action — a topic he did not address Monday. Anti-abortion advocates told POLITICO they don’t view Trump’s declaration that abortion should be … Read more
These are not blue-blazer Southern Baptists. This is the demon-mapping, prophecy-believing, spiritual-warfare, end-times-army, take-the-U.S.-Capitol-for-the-heavenly-Kingdom crowd—a movement that has its own history, its own superstars, and an agenda that goes beyond saving souls, or drawing upon faith to influence policy, as Americans of many religions do. Read more at The Atlantic
More than a third of states consider fetuses to be people at some point during pregnancy. Any one of them could be the next Alabama. Read more at Politico
The position of the North Carolina GOP under Whatley on embryos mirrors a recent decision by the Alabama Supreme Court. On February 16, Alabama’s highest court ruled that frozen embryos are “children” — entitled to the same legal protections as an infant or a third grader. This was based on a religious conviction of when … Read more
Tom Parker, a Republican who joined the court in 2005, wrote a concurring opinion that quoted at length from sources such as the Book of Genesis, the Ten Commandments and Christian thinkers of centuries ago, such as Thomas Aquinas. But comments he has made in other media have raised questions about his seeming espousal of … Read more
“He framed it entirely assuming that the state of Alabama is a theocracy, and that that is a legitimate way of evaluating laws and policies,” said Julie Ingersoll, a University of North Florida professor who studies religion and culture. “It looks like he decided to just dismiss the history of first amendment religious freedom jurisprudence … Read more
