Life Advocacy Briefing

Question of the Week

WILL YOU MISS US? Our production team will be traveling over the next week, so we will not be publishing the March 3 edition. Expecting – with your prayers for our safety – to be back the following week.

The Shoe Has Dropped

IT SHOULD COME AS NO SURPRISE that, as he concluded his first month in office, Pres. Trump signed an executive order (EO) promoting in vitro fertilization. After all, he endorsed IVF, at the request of Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL) during his Presidential campaign. But the executive order he signed on Feb. 18 included an open door, reports Dan Hart for Family Research Council’s The Washington Stand, to input on policy recommendations.

“Shortly after the EO was issued,” writes Mr. Hart, “the Trump White House signaled that it will likely work with pro-life organizations to formulate IVF policy recommendations for the President. Daily Wire senior reporter Mary Margaret Olohan posted on X Tuesday that she ‘asked the White House about concerns regarding conscience protections for religious Americans who object to IVF and concerns about the discarding of embryos. White House officials pointed out to me,’” writes Ms. Olohan, quoted by Mr. Hart, “‘that the EO calls for policy recommendations [and] said part of that process will include getting input from [Capitol] Hill and other stakeholders, including pro-life groups.’

“Last October, [Mr.] Trump also remarked during an interview,” writes Mr. Hart, “that he would be open to exemptions for religious organizations and businesses that are against IVF.” But such exemptions are not enough. If our tax dollars are used in any way to promote IVF, regulations must accompany them in order to limit the harvesting and storage of embryos, at the very least.

Mr. Hart goes on to quote Mary Szoch, director of Family Research Council’s Center for Human Dignity, who, he writes, “also encouraged a highly wary approach toward IVF, telling The Washington Stand that the protection of unborn children must be the focal point of IVF policy,” and pro-life citizens have every right to expect such protective policies from a Trump Administration, once the policymakers get a grip on the reality of the IVF industry.

Mrs. Szoch noted, quoted by Mr. Hart, “‘While IVF has resulted in the blessing of many children being born, we must also recognize that the process has destroyed many more lives, while leaving countless others to an uncertain fate in a freezer. Far from respecting the dignity of all involved, IVF exploits the good and godly desire parents have for a child and pads the wallets of the IVF industry’s executives while doing so. The industry,’” she said, “‘engages in eugenic testing, treats unborn life as disposable and does nothing to address the underlying cause of a couple’s infertility.’”

We can hope the President directs a deep study of the practices of the IVF industry before committing our tax dollars to its operatives.

In The Washington Stand report, Mrs. Szoch offers the Administration a look into the field of “restorative reproductive medicine as an alternative for couples struggling with infertility, including NaPro Technology.” The Washington Stand commentary offers a “listing of centers around the US and the world that offer restorative reproductive medicine,” which can be found on the Internet at https://www.fertilitycare.org/find-a-center.

“‘Restorative reproductive medicine,’” explained Mrs. Szoch in the TWS report, “‘aims to treat the underlying health issues that cause a couple to experience infertility. … It works to make Americans healthy, and as a result, restorative reproductive medicine is far more successful than IVF in helping couples carry a child to term. The beautiful thing,’” she said, “‘is that it does this while respecting the dignity of all persons involved.’ According to studies, only about 40% of IVF cycles result in a live birth for women under the age of 35, and the percentage drops significantly for women over 35.”

As discouraging as those IVF “results” are, the practices of many in the IVF field are worse, as it is a common tactic to manipulate the “creation” of scores of embryos per customer, leading to the freezing and long-term storage and eventual killing of those that are surplus once an implantation has been successful.

We hope both the White House and policymakers like Sen. Britt will look deeply into the practices of the IVF industry before full commitment to its promotion at the expense of the taxpayers and via the massive power of the federal government.

Planned Parenthood in Trouble?

THE NEW YORK TIMES HAS PUBLISHED A REPORT questioning the practices and conditions of Planned Parenthood shops, reports Peter Martin for LifeSiteNews.

The abortion cartel’s principal operator is “facing ‘scores of allegations’ of botched abortions and other injuries, including ‘misplaced IUDs,’ its staff members often lack the most basic medical training and its facilities are ‘in dire need’ of repairs, according to” the NYT report, writes Mr. Martin.

“The Times, which is strongly pro-abortion, highlighted the case,” Mr. Martin notes, “of a woman in Albany, New York, who sought an abortion from Planned Parenthood after realizing that she was eight weeks pregnant. ‘Several weeks after the procedure, she was still bleeding heavily and suffering from painful cramps. She took another home pregnancy test, and when it came back positive, the clinic staff assured her they had seen the aborted (baby) and there was nothing to worry about,’ the Times related,” reports Mr. Martin. “‘It was only after she went to an emergency room that she discovered the problem: The baby was still in her womb,’ it continued. ‘Twelve weeks after the failed abortion, Alston went into labor and delivered a baby who quickly died.’

“The woman sued Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood for malpractice,” writes Mr. Martin, noting “the Times said [the case] is one of several complaints’ against the New York facility brought by clients to the woman’s lawyer.

“‘The case of the botched abortion in New York is one of scores of allegations reviewed by the Times that accuse Planned Parenthood of poor care,’ according to the report,” Mr. Martin notes.

Mr. Martin relates many more incidents and indications of trouble at Planned Parenthood across the country. Life Advocacy Briefing readers can find his report at https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/planned-parenthood-faces-numerous-allegations-of-botched-abortions-other-injuries-new-york-times. We recommend checking it out.

Stateside

• LOUISIANA GOV. JEFF LANDRY (R) HAS SIGNED an extradition warrant to bring a New York abortionist to justice in his state, where a grand jury has indicted Dr. Margaret Daley Carpenter, who, reports Peter Martin for LifeSiteNews, “is infamous for sending abortion pills into states with pro-life laws.” In a video posted on X on Feb. 13, Gov. Landry said, notes Mr. Martin, “‘There is only one right answer in this situation, and it is that that doctor must face extradition to Louisiana where she can stand trial and justice will be served.’” In the specific case, the New York abortionist reportedly supplied the baby poison to the unborn child’s grandmother, who “coerced her daughter” into taking the two-drug cocktail. The grandmother has been indicted along with the New York doctor; the felony, notes Mr. Martin, “carries between one and five years in prison.” Governor Hochul has “declared … that she will not sign Landry’s extradition warrant.” This is how it goes when abortion policy is left to the states. A Texas judge has ordered the same New York abortionist, Margaret Daley Carpenter, “to stop sending abortion pills into the state and to pay a $100,000 fine,” reports Calvin Freiburger for LifeSiteNews, “challenging the abortion lobby’s strategy of circumventing pro-life laws by mailing abortion pills across state lines.” In Texas, Ms. Carpenter was sued by the state’s attorney general, Ken Paxton (R), notes Mr. Freiburger, “for having ‘unlawfully provided a Collin County resident with abortion-inducing drugs that ended the life of an unborn child and resulted in serious complications for the mother, who then required medical intervention.’ She is not licensed to practice medicine in the state of Texas,” but, Mr. Freiburger reports, she is “founder of the ‘Abortion Coalition for Telemedicine,’” through which customers can acquire abortifacients without in-person consultation with a so-called physician.

• DOCTOR-ABETTED SUICIDE APPARENTLY ISN’t ENOUGH for the radicals who run government in Oregon. The state senate is now considering a bill to broaden the field of legalized abettors to non-physicians, reports Leslie Wolfgang for Live Action. It would “permit physician assistants and nurse practitioners,” she writes, “to prescribe ‘medication’ to help a person to commit suicide,” changing the term “‘attending physician’ to ‘prescribing provider,’ and ‘consulting physician’ to ‘consulting provider.’ The term ‘provider’ would be defined as a physician, physician assistant or nurse practitioner under Oregon law. … Vermont also has a bill to expand its assisted suicide law,” writes Ms. Wolfgang, who quotes Wesley J. Smith in National Review asking, “‘I wouldn’t trust a PA or NP to diagnose me with six months to live, would you?’”

• SOUTH CAROLINA’s SUPREME COURT HEARD ORAL ARGUMENTS a week ago, reports Calvin Freiburger for LifeSiteNews, “about the state’s heartbeat-based abortion ban, which Planned Parenthood is attempting to get struck down on the grounds that it is ‘impermissibly vague.’” Though the law has some unfortunate loopholes, as of last summer, he writes, “official state data showed that the law was responsible for reducing South Carolina’s abortions by almost 80%.” The state’s high court has already upheld the law in a 2023 ruling, but a new lawsuit has been filed by which Planned Parenthood seeks to move the law’s enforcement to “nine or 10 weeks,” notes Mr. Freiburger, “as opposed to six.” But the attorney for the state “argued,” writes Mr. Freiburger, “that the law’s actual requirement – signs of cardiac activity rather than a particular length of time – was sufficiently clear. … He also noted that abortion defenders never raised the question of whether ‘this is a nine-week or a 10-week law’ before, either in legislative deliberations or in Planned Parenthood’s previous lawsuit. … ‘We’re looking at when the heart is first performing the function of the heart,’” stated one of the attorneys for the state.

• THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY LEADER IN THE SOUTH DAKOTA HOUSE has announced, reports Matt Lamb for LifeSiteNews, “she will not be pushing for any ‘pro-abortion’ laws this session” – actually using the term “pro-abortion.” According to the South Dakota Searchlight, writes Mr. Lamb, “House Minority Leader Erin Healy said recently, … ‘I just don’t think there is an appetite for any pro-abortion or [so-called] pro-women’s rights bills, unfortunately.’” At last, a Democratic politician who can read the November election results and act accordingly! Previously this South Dakota “leader” has called it “‘dangerous’ and ‘unAmerican,’” writes Mr. Lamb, “to champion children being raised in a home with a mom and a dad, as opposed to two men, two women or a single parent.”

Encouraging Signals from RFK

Feb. 14, 2025, LifeSiteNews report by Doug Mainwaring

             In an interview with Fox News’s Laura Ingraham after his Oval Office swearing-in as the new [Secretary] of Health & Human Services (HHS), Robert F. Kennedy Jr. confirmed that Pres. Donald Trump has asked him to study the dangers of abortifacient drugs.

             “During the Biden Administration, the NIH [National Institutes of Health] did something that was inexcusable, which is to tell doctors and patients not to report injuries, and that’s not a good policy,” said Kennedy.

             While being questioned during his Senate confirmation hearing weeks earlier, Kennedy insisted that “every abortion is a tragedy” when pressed on his abortion stance. He also indicated that it is important to know the “adverse effects” of every drug, including the abortion drug mifepristone.

             “I agree with Pres. Trump that every abortion is a tragedy. I agree with him that we cannot be a moral nation if we have 1.2 million abortions a year,” said Kennedy, who is generally supportive of legal abortion, when questioned by the fervently pro-abortion Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-NH).

             An open letter to RFK Jr. by David Bjornstrom, a retired California attorney and member of the US Supreme Court bar, published by LifeSiteNews last month warned that the FDA, which now falls under Kennedy’s purview, is harming women by pretending that the abortion pill is safe.

             Though mifepristone poses serious health risks, the FDA has chosen to ignore adverse events and claims that the abortion drug is “safe” in order to further a political agenda.

             “According to the Charlotte Lozier Institute, as many as 20% of the women who undergo chemical abortions suffer complications, four times that of surgical abortions, including a shocking number of deaths,” noted Bjornstrom. “Chemical abortions are over 50% more likely than surgical abortions to result in an emergency room visit, affecting five percent of women who use them. As many as five percent of the chemical abortions fail to expel all the tissue, requiring surgery to complete the abortion.”

             Bjornstrom continued: “Chemical abortions are particularly dangerous in cases of ectopic pregnancy, approximately 1-2% of all pregnancies. The FDA’s own data report the death of multiple women taking the abortion pills with ectopic pregnancies. Shockingly, the FDA does not require any in-person evaluation or ultrasound as a safeguard to diagnose an ectopic pregnancy beforehand.”

             Ironically, while the drug manufacturer, doctors and advertisers assure women that the drug is “safe,” even the FDA quietly admits that there can be dangerous, even fatal, reactions requiring emergency care, and that the abortion drugs do not even work in two-to-seven percent of cases.

             Planned Parenthood Action (PPA), the abortion giant’s political arm, was quick to express its alarm over Kennedy taking the helm of HHS and outrage that “access” to chemical abortions might be curtailed. PPA also fretted over the future availability of so-called “gender transitions” for “young trans people,” a dangerous industry that the Trump Administration has said is “maiming and sterilizing” children through chemical and surgical mutilation.

             “Though a protracted fight last year led to the Supreme Court allowing mifepristone access to continue, new legal challenges could raise the possibility that mifepristone will once again get caught in legal crosshairs and may not make it through with its current protocol intact,” anguished The Nation’s Aziza Ahmed. “With Kennedy overseeing the FDA, he could push for additional investigations into the medication, as he’s already sowed doubt about its safety.”

Sen. Thune at March for Life

Jan. 24, 2025, address by Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), transcribed by Life Advocacy Briefing

             Well, good afternoon, pro-lifers. It feels like a South Dakota day here. Ladies and gentlemen, I am grateful to the March for Life for inviting me to be here with you today, and I am nothing short of inspired looking out at all of you.

             We stand here today – you stand here today – to bear witness to the beauty and goodness of every human life. To remind people of the great truth upon which our country was founded, that all men and women “are created equal and endowed by the Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are the right to Life, to liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

             And I know that some days, fighting for the right to Life can seem like an uphill battle, but I want you to look around, look around you today to the tens of thousands of Americans who will march up to Capitol Hill with you today, and I want you to remember: You are not alone. You are part of a great movement united around the truth that every life is precious. That every human being is created in the image and likeness of God and has infinite value and worth. It says in the, it says in Psalm 139, “You formed my inmost parts, you wove me in my mother’s womb; I give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made, and my soul knows it very well.”

             I stand with you in this fight, and so do many of my colleagues in Congress. And like you, we will continue to work toward a day when the lives of all human beings are protected, even when they’re small, even when they’re weak, even when they’re vulnerable. Especially, especially when they’re small or weak or vulnerable.

             Ladies and gentlemen, the fight may be long, but we have the truth on our side, and I am confident, and I am confident that at the end of the day, truth will win – Life will win. Thank you for being here today. God bless you all, and keep fighting for Life. Thank you.