by Itunuoluwa Adebo
US Vice President Mike Pence declared victory for the anti-abortion movement Wednesday night, boasting that President Trump has “literally filled” his administration with politicians who oppose reproductive rights.
At a gala for the anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony List, Pence said “Life is winning in America”, “President Trump has been keeping his promises to stand for life. He’s literally filled this White House and agencies with pro-life leaders.”
Pence, who was in the forefront of the fight against reproductive rights as a congressman and governor of Indiana, went on to list the members of those he referred to as the anti-abortion “A-team” . Names he mentioned are the Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price, Housing Secretary Ben Carson, Energy Secretary Rick Perry, U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley and Trump’s counsellor Kellyanne Conway.
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Also on the “A-team” was Charmaine Yoest, the former CEO of Americans United for Life, who is assistant secretary of health and human services, and Teresa Manning ,a former lobbyist for the National Right to Life Committee who is expected to be appointed to oversee the nation’s family planning program at HHS.
“For the first time in a long time, America has an administration that’s filled top to bottom with people who stand without apology for life,” Pence said.
Addressing a crowd at the Andrew Mellon Auditorium in Washington, D.C., Pence celebrated the various ways Trump has chipped away at abortion rights during his first hundred days in office. “On Thursday, the House will vote on health care legislation that would withhold Medicaid money from Planned Parenthood and prohibit tax credits from being used to buy insurance plans that cover abortion. I like to say, in this administration, we’re in the promise-keeping business,” Pence said.
While Trump and Pence strive to roll back reproductive rights, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton offered a counterexample of how government treat women while addressing Planned Parenthood at its annual gala Tuesday night, Clinton said the “only right approach” to leadership is “to defend the ability of every woman to make these deeply personal decisions for herself.”
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