Why evangelicals are upset at Trump, Vance for leaving abortion to states
Conservative evangelical Christian voters continue to wrestle with a shifting Republican stance on abortion, with former President Donald Trump and his running mate JD Vance further agitating that confusion with recent statements about a federal abortion ban.
Stalwart evangelical supporters of Trump called out the GOP presidential nominee for taking a less hard-lined stance against abortion, going as far to say Trump is no less pro-choice than Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris. The recent angst is a continuation of a debate that erupted ahead of the Republican National Convention in July, when the religious right urged the GOP not to soften its stance on abortion.
Influential leaders within the Nashville-based Southern Baptist Convention and other prominent evangelical figures are increasingly expressing a sense of disillusionment and are outright saying they won’t vote for Trump come November.
Here’s what led them to that point.
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Confusion sets in ahead of Republican National Convention
Evangelical confusion about the Republican party’s anti-abortion messaging began to set in ahead of the Republican convention, when the party endorsed a platform that says abortion is best left to the states.
“The Republican Party has been clear about the value and dignity of life for over a generation. It must not fail to do so now in this post-Roe moment,” Brent Leatherwood, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, the SBC’s public policy arm, said in a July 3 letter to the Republication National Committee.
The SBC voted in June to oppose in vitro fertilization. Trump on Thursday said he would require insurance companies or the federal government to cover IVF costs.
Other influential Christian leaders joined the chorus. For Leatherwood and others, the hands-off attitude of leaving abortion policy to the states to determine the best outcome weakens the evangelical push for expanding abortion restrictions at the state and federal levels.
“National leadership is critical in this new era as we need leaders willing to articulate a robust vision for life,” Leatherwood said in his July 3 letter. “To do anything short of that would signal to millions of pro-life Americans that our cause has no value.”
Anxieties grow more forcefully
The anxiety expressed by Leatherwood materialized more forcefully this past week with recent statements by Trump and Vance on abortion.
“My Administration will be great for women and their reproductive rights,” Trump said in an Aug. 23 social media post. Then, NBC aired an interview with Vance, who said Trump would veto a federal abortion ban.
"Donald Trump's view is that we want the individual states and their individual cultures and their unique political sensibilities to make these decisions because we do not want a non-stop federal conflict over this issue,” Vance said in the NBC interview.
More: JD Vance: Donald Trump would veto federal abortion ban
The backlash was swift.
Within the SBC alone, some of the most conservative voices expressed disdain. For example, Denny Burk, president of the Louisville-based Council for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, a traditionalist advocacy group, called Vance’s comments “horrific.” Georgia pastor Mike Stone, a former candidate for SBC president whose support for Trump was central to a conflict between Stone and other SBC leaders, called Trump’s social media post “morally wrong and politically foolish.”
Other influential evangelicals outside the SBC, such as Family Research Council President Tony Perkins, said on social media, “Trump is not only suppressing his own support, he is going to hurt the vast majority of Republican candidates who are 100% pro-life.”
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Frustration, but no revolt
Though deeply frustrated, evangelicals aren’t outright revolting against Trump.
Some voices are vowing to pull their vote for the Republican ticket in November. But as a counterbalance, other key Trump backers are redirecting concern elsewhere.
“Instead of criticizing Trump over a national abortion ban now let’s do what we can do to persuade the electorate today to make abortion not only illegal but unthinkable,” said Texas pastor Jack Graham, who leads one of the largest SBC churches in the nation and was on a religious advisory board during the Trump administration.
Al Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, said on a recent podcast he was upset with Republicans but that the other option is still far more dangerous.
“Evangelical Christians are left in a very awkward position,” Mohler said on the podcast. “We are left with one candidate who carries some of our hopes. And we have another candidate who carries almost all of our fears on this issue.”
Following additional comments by Trump on Florida's six-week abortion ban and in-vitro fertilization, Mohler more directly criticized Trump.
"Former President Trump had better count the cost of abandoning pro-life voters — quickly. That cost is going to be very high," Mohler said on social media Thursday evening. "Pro-life Christian voters are going to have to think clearly, honestly, and soberly about our challenge in this election — starting at the top of the ticket."
Former President Trump now appears determined to undermine his prolife supporters. His criticism of Florida abortion restrictions & his call for government funding of IVF & his recent statement about “reproductive rights” seem almost calculated to alienate prolife voters.
— Albert Mohler (@albertmohler) August 29, 2024
Liam Adams covers religion for The Tennessean, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at [email protected] or on social media @liamsadams.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Trump, Vance on abortion: Why evangelicals are upset
