What Difference Does It Make To Have A
Pro-Life President?
Some people ask whether a President makes any
difference in the fight against abortion.
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Does it matter if the President is for or against abortion? What can he
do?
No elected official is more powerful with regard to decreasing – or
increasing – the number of abortions performed every year than the
President.
The President of the United States issues Executive Orders, drafts the
federal budget sent to Congress, vetoes legislation, staffs Washington’s
bureaucracy, appoints (with the advice and consent of the Senate) federal
judges, and commands a podium unmatched in political influence.
Here’s a brief list of reasons why the President has the single greatest
impact on abortion in the United States.
Supreme Court Nominations
No Presidential power is more important than the Chief Executive’s
ability to appoint Supreme Court Justices. Those who sit on the nation’s
highest bench literally determine if babies will live or die.
Federal District and Appellate Court Appointments
The President doesn’t just appoint Supreme Court Justices. He also names
judges to 94 federal district and 13 appellate courts.
Executive Branch Appointments
It’s often said that “personnel is policy.” To have his policies carried
out, a President must have like-minded individuals in key positions.
We don’t just elect a President, we elect an administration.
Every President fills over 7,000 positions in the White House, federal
departments and agencies, and advisory panels. When laws are passed, it’s
usually Presidential appointees who write the regulations that can determine
how those laws are interpreted and implemented.
Executive Orders
The President has the power to direct the actions of the Executive Branch
of government through the issuance of Executive Orders. These orders, made
with only the stroke of the President’s pen, can direct everyone in the
White House and every federal department and agency to do or not do as the
President wishes.
Some examples of past Executive Orders are:
One to prevent federal tax dollars from going to
organizations that perform or promote abortions overseas (i.e., the Mexico
City Policy);
Ones to prohibit or allow the federal funding of
embryonic stem cell research; and
Ones to prohibit or allow taxpayer funds to go to the
United Nations Population Fund, which has aided China’s one-child/forced
abortion policies.
From the first day of his administration, a President can unilaterally
decide that taxpayers will have to subsidize the taking of innocent human
life – or he can declare that such funding must not take place.
The Federal Budget
While Congress holds the power of the purse strings, the budget process
begins each year with the President submitting a spending plan to the House
of Representatives. The budget sets the debate regarding spending priorities
and programs and organizations to be funded or cut.
The President’s Veto
A pro-life Congress can pass all kinds of bills to protect women and
babies, but unless both the House and Senate have super pro-life majorities
(290 seats in the House; 67 in the Senate), a pro-abortion President can
kill any legislation with his veto pen.
Conversely, a pro-abortion Congress can be stopped by the veto of a
pro-life President.
Practically speaking, no pro-life legislation can be enacted into law
unless the President is also pro-life.
