Life Advocacy Briefing

Question of the Week

WHAT WAS MICHELLE OBAMA THINKING when she said during her podcast last week (quoted by various news sources, including in a commentary by Jonathon VanMaren for LifeSiteNews): “‘Women’s reproductive health is about our life. It’s about this whole complicated reproductive system that the least of what it does is produce life.’” Really?

June, by Any Other Name …

TWO OF AMERICA’s HIGH-RANKING OFFICIALS ARE PROPOSING new designations for the month of June, labeled for decades now as “Pride Month” in service of the homosexual political movement.

Oklahoma GOP Gov. Kevin Stitt has issued a proclamation declaring June as the “Month for Life,” reports Calvin Freiburger for LifeSiteNews, commemorating the month when the Supreme Court in 2022 overturned the near-50-year-old deadly Roe v. Wade ruling via its decision in the Dobbs case. His proclamation declares, writes Mr. Freiburger, “that the ‘inherent dignity and value of every human life are fundamental principles that shape our society’” and calls attention to the June 7 March for Life at the state capitol.

“‘It’s simple: Life begins at conception. We’re committed to supporting moms every step. God has a plan for every life,’ [Gov.] Stitt said,” according to LifeSiteNews. And the governor’s proclamation provides a link, notes Mr. Freiburger, “to a state government page for pregnancy, parenting, adoption and financial aid resources for mothers who choose Life.”

Meanwhile, in our nation’s capital, US Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL) is leading a coalition of Republican lawmakers in introducing a resolution to designate June as “Family Month,” reports Robert Jones for LifeSiteNews, citing The Daily Wire as source. She explained to TDW, notes Mr. Jones, “‘The American family is under relentless attack from a radical leftist agenda that seeks to erase truth, redefine marriage and confuse our children.’ Recognizing June as Family Month, she added,” writes Mr. Jones, “‘rejects the lie of “Pride” and instead honors God’s timeless and perfect design.’”

Co-sponsoring HRes-475 are GOP Representatives Barry Moore (AL); Marjorie Greene & Barry Loudermilk (GA); Claudia Tenney (NY); Mark Harris (NC); Michael Rulli & Warren Davidson (OH); Josh Brecheen (OK); Diana Harshbarger (TN); John McGuire (VA); Glenn Grothman (WI); Harriet Hageman (WY); and, from Texas: GOP Representatives Michael Cloud, Brandon Gill, Troy Nehls, Pete Sessions & Randy Weber.

HRes-475, notes Mr. Jones, “describes the ‘married mother and father’ household as the ‘best environment for children to thrive’ and warns of collapsing birth rates, rising cohabitation and anti-family tax structures. It also invokes John Adams’ 1798 warning that the Constitution is ‘made only for a moral and religious people,’ tying America’s survival to the strength of the family.

“‘The decline of marriage and family,’ the resolution warns, ‘has corresponded to a rise in crime, drug abuse and other social ills.’”

Free Again

THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION HAS RESCINDED a Biden-era mandate, report Doug Mainwaring and Matt Lamb for LifeSiteNews (LSN), that “used federal law to coerce ER [emergency-room] doctors to commit abortions under the Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act (EMTALA). The move affirms the plain words of the statute,” note the news writers: “EMTALA protects both the ‘pregnant woman’ and the ‘unborn child.’”

The Biden mandate was challenged by a group of Catholic physicians and healthcare providers, reports LSN, represented by Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF). “‘Emergency room physicians can and do treat life-threatening conditions such as ectopic pregnancies, and every state allows doctors to do whatever is necessary to preserve the life of a mother,’” ADF senior counsel Matt Bowman said, quoted by LSN. “‘Now, doctors will be able to perform their life-giving duties without fear of government officials forcing them to end life and violate their beliefs.’”

The Biden Regime, explain the LSN writers, “sought to reinterpret EMTALA to include a right to abortions in the wake of the June 2022 reversal of Roe v. Wade.” Read that again; It was after Roe was overturned that the federal government sought to mandate abortion on emergency room personnel.

Rolling Back Another Biden Rule

A FEDERAL JUDGE IN LOUISIANA HAS OVERTURNED a Biden Regime rule, reports Clare Marie Merkowsky for LifeSiteNews, “forcing employers to provide time off for abortion. …

“‘The record before the court clearly establishes,’” wrote US District Judge David Joseph, quoted by Ms. Merkowsky, “‘that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission [EEOC] has exceeded its statutory authority to implement the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act [PWFA] and, in so doing, both unlawfully expropriated the authority of Congress and encroached upon the sovereignty of the Plaintiff States under the basic principles of federalism.’” How refreshing – a nod to federalism!

“In 2022, the EEOC passed the PWFA to ensure that employers with more than 15 employees provided their staff with accommodations for pregnancy,” notes Ms. Merkowsky. “Accommodations included time off for medical appointments and relief from heavy lifting. However, in fall 2024, the Biden Administration’s EEOC proposed a rule to define ‘pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions’ in the PWFA as encompassing ‘having or choosing not to have an abortion.’ The amendment passed by a 3-2 vote along party lines,” writes Ms. Merkowsky, “forcing employers to support their employees’ abortion procedure.”

Judge Joseph preliminarily enjoined enforcement of the Biden rule distorting the law in June of 2024. That injunction applied in Louisiana and Mississippi and “was kept in place,” notes Ms. Merkowsky, “until [he] overturned the rule [in May]. “In his ruling,” she writes, “[Judge] Joseph pointed out that the Biden Administration violated ‘major questions doctrine’ in their attempt to force employers to support abortion.”

Huge Victory in Illinois

WHEN THE ILLINOIS GENERAL ASSEMBLY ADJOURNED its regular session at midnight on May 31, Life advocates breathed a sigh of relief and offered prayers of praise to the One Who had intervened.

Though a bill to establish abetted suicide as public policy in the state had expired earlier in the five-month session, its provisions were tacked on to an unrelated Senate bill pending in the House during the legislature’s last week, too late to stir much public response. And the House quickly passed the measure with 63 votes, needing 60, just two days before scheduled adjournment.

But when the gavel came down to dismiss the state senate on its last session day, the motion to adopt the House-passed amendment had not been called for a vote, and Senators went home without having to confront the conscience-challenging proposal. Praise the Lord!

And in Nevada

LEGISLATION TO AUTHORIZE ABETTED SUICIDE IN NEVADA has been withdrawn, for the time being, apparently because of a declaration by Gov. Joe Lombardo (R) that he would not sign it if it landed on his desk. In fact, he would veto it, he said, as he has such bills in the past.

The bill’s sponsor, Assemblyman Joe Dalia (D), acknowledged, reports Bridget Sielicki for Live Action, “there was no point in proceeding without [the governor’s] support.” Though “emphasiz[ing] that he will continue to push for assisted suicide in future legislative sessions,” writes Ms. Sielicki, Mr. Dalia said, as deadline day approached, “‘We just didn’t feel like we were going to get there and bridge that divide.’” He appears to be right about that!

Ignorance Is No Excuse

INDIANA’s LEGISLATURE & GOVERNOR HAVE ENACTED a statute, which takes effect in July, requiring public schools, reports Calvin Freiburger for LifeSiteNews, “to include ultrasound videos detailing the humanity of preborn life. …

“Enacted in May, SB-442 requires school presentations on human growth and development,” writes Mr. Freiburger, “to include ‘high definition ultrasound video, at least three minutes in duration, showing the development of the brain, heart, sex organs and other vital organs in early fetal development’ as well as a ‘high quality computer-generated rendering or animation showing the process of fertilization and each stage of fetal development inside the uterus, noting significant markers in cell growth and organ development for every week of pregnancy from fertilization to birth.’”

The pro-life group Live Action has produced a video called “Baby Olivia,” which could be used to fulfill part of the mandate. Mr. Freiburger observes that the LA video “has been adopted in four states so far, with 18 other states considering it this year, according to Live Action founder Lila Rose.”

Wisconsinites Beware!

A FORMER PUBLIC POLICY DIRECTOR FOR PLANNED PARENTHOOD announced in late May she is a candidate for the Wisconsin Supreme Court. If elected, Appellate Judge Chris Taylor would join another Planned Parenthood veteran attorney on the state’s high court.

Judge Taylor’s candidacy aims to unseat current state Supreme Court Justice Rebecca Bradley, who, reports Cassy Cooke for Live Action, “is running for re-election … to a second ten-year term.”

Judge Taylor has also served as a Democratic state legislator for nine years, according to her Wikipedia biography, representing Madison. “During her time as a legislator,” writes Ms. Cooke, “[Judge] Taylor sponsored at least two pro-abortion bills, neither of which passed.

Just as the recently elected Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice – and fellow former Planned Parenthood official Susan Crawford – did in her campaign, Judge Taylor refused to commit to recuse herself on cases involving her former employer.

Fetal Heartbeat Law Stands

SOUTH CAROLINA’s SUPREME COURT HAS UNANIMOUSLY UPHELD the 2023 Fetal Heartbeat & Protection from Abortion Act, reports Ben Johnson for The Washington Stand (TWS). The decision ends Planned Parenthood’s third litigation attempt to overturn South Carolina’s determination to protect the lives of developing unborn children and to protect their sometimes vulnerable mothers from intimidation or irreversible error. 

“After losing a previous case to declare the law unconstitutional,” notes Mr. Johnson, “Planned Parenthood focused its third round of [litigation] against the act on trying to redefine the onset of a ‘fetal heartbeat’ from six weeks to at least nine weeks, affording the abortion giant [opportunity] to commit three more weeks of unrestrained abortion. But justices ruled that Planned Parenthood did not believe some of its own arguments, which relied heavily on semantics.

“The state Supreme Court ruled … [in mid-May] that, while medical professionals may ‘disagree on [the] precise meaning’ of nearly every medical term in the law, its use of the term ‘fetal heartbeat’ constitutes a ‘biologically identifiable moment in time … when electrical impulses are detectable on an ultrasound – which even Planned Parenthood acknowledges occurs at approximately six weeks of pregnancy.’”

It’s Deadly – & It’s Meant to Be

IT WAS NOT HERE; it was in India. But the tragedy is real, nonetheless, and worthy of note.

A young mother – just 23 years old and pregnant with a six-month baby – has died after being forced, allegedly by her husband, to ingest abortion pills. She suffered heavy bleeding, reports Robert Jones for LifeSiteNews, and died at Gandhi Hospital in Secunderabad after being transferred from the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences in Adilabad. She leaves behind a two-year-old son. Her husband is being sought by police. The report did not mention the fate of the gestating baby or whether any efforts were mounted to rescue him or her.

“Abortion pills enjoy broad support from politicians across the world,” writes Mr. Jones. “But while they allow abortions to take place at home without costly medical supervision, there is growing awareness that they facilitate forced abortion by abusive partners, parents or other parties.” Lord, have mercy.

Progress on RU Review

June 4, 2025, commentary by Ben Johnson in The Washington Stand

             After facing pressure from a pro-life Republican Senator, the Trump Administration official responsible for overseeing the nation’s drug approval and regulation policies has promised to launch a full-scale investigation into the abortion pill, mifepristone – an announcement met with joy by the nation’s right-to-life movement.

             “FDA is committed to safeguarding public health by ensuring the safety, efficacy and quality of the products it regulates,” wrote Food & Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Marty Makary in a June 2 letter to Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO), the Senator revealed on [the] social media platform X. “As the Commissioner of Food & Drugs, I am committed to conducting a review of mifepristone and working with the professional career scientists at the Agency who review this data.”

             Pro-life advocates have long asked health officials to review the safety of mifepristone, since successive Democratic administrations have loosened restrictions about its disbursement and stopped counting adverse effects, asking doctors only to report deaths directly attributable to the chemical.*

             “Praise God that the FDA has once again confirmed that they are reviewing the safety data on mifepristone. The impact of this drug on all women who take it has never been fully investigated by the FDA,” Mary Szoch, director of the Center for Human Dignity at Family Research Council, told The Washington Stand. “The latest data show that nearly 11% of women have a serious event within 45 days of taking the drug, including ER visits, infection, hemorrhage, incomplete abortion and sepsis.”

             The promise represents a turn-around for Makary, who announced at the April 24 Semafor World Economy Summit that he had “no plans to take action” to curtail mifepristone, the first pill of the two-drug cocktail that induces a chemical abortion. “This is exceptionally disappointing to say the least,” wrote [Sen.] Hawley at the time. “Not a good beginning at the FDA.” Makary’s latest pledge came in response to an April 28 letter by Hawley, calling on the Trump Administration to reinstate abortion pill protocols to protect women’s health and safety which had been repealed by the Biden-Harris Administration. …

             Chemical abortion accounted for 63% of all abortions in states where the practice is legal in 2023 – up from 53% in 2020 – according to the pro-abortion Guttmacher Institute.

             The commitment follows Hawley’s asking Secretary of Health & Human Services (HHS) Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to do a “top-to-bottom review” of mifepristone. “At the very least, the label should be changed,” replied Kennedy. “I’ve asked Marty Makary at the FDA to do a complete review and report back.”

             Kennedy’s commitment echoes his statements from the beginning of the Administration. “We need to understand the safety of every drug, mifepristone and every other drug,” said RFK Jr. during his confirmation hearings in January. “It’s against everything we believe in in this country, that patients or doctors should not be reporting adverse events.” President Trump has “made it clear to me that he wants me to look at the safety issues, and I’ll ask NIH [National Institutes of Health] and FDA to do that.” …

             “FDA needs to release the names of all experts who reviewed the abortion pill* so we can see what their bias was,” said Carole Novielli of Live Action. …

*LifeAdvocacyBriefing editor’s note: Identifying the so-called experts who were involved in the FDA’s marketing clearance for RU-486 and limiting drug adverse events to reporting deaths of ingestors is not enough. It was clear, at the close of the year 2000, when RU was unleashed on the US market, that the FDA rushed its marketing approval. Reports at the time identified pressure from President and Mrs. Clinton on their way out of office and claimed the approval was rushed for political reasons. Those reports need to be reviewed and investigations pursued to garner whatever information is still available concerning the basis for the marketing approval, as well as the processes and pressures involved in every FDA decision since then to lift limits on the drug cocktail’s use and to alter label warnings. The Makary promise is a good start, but that is all it is, for now.

Wisdom from the Great Communicator

EXCERPT #8 from Abortion & the Conscience of the Nation, 1983 treatise by then-President Ronald Reagan, published in Human Life Review, then as a hardcover book from Thomas Nelson Publishers

             Despite the formidable obstacles before us, we must not lose heart. This is not the first time our country has been divided by a Supreme Court decision that denied the value of certain human lives. The Dred Scott decision of 1857 was not overturned in a day, or a year, or even a decade. At first, only a minority of Americans recognized and deplored the moral crisis brought about by denying the full humanity of our black brothers and sisters; but that minority persisted in their vision and finally prevailed. They did it by appealing to the hearts and minds of their countrymen, to the truth of human dignity under God. From their example, we know that respect for the sacred value of human life is too deeply engrained in the hearts of our people to remain forever suppressed. But the great majority of the American people have not yet made their voices heard, and we cannot expect them to – any more than the public voice arose against slavery – until the issue is clearly framed and presented.