Pro-life leaders are sounding off about the ‘serious and growing threat’ of chemical abortion pills after President-elect Trump said he would not restrict access to the pills as president.
Abortion pills, also known as chemical abortion, are now the most common abortion method, accounting for over 60% of all U.S. abortions.
During an interview with NBC’s ‘Meet the Press’ this past weekend, Trump was asked whether he would restrict abortion pill access via executive action.
Trump responded definitively that ‘the answer is no.’
He added: ‘I’ll probably stay with exactly what I’ve been saying for the last two years,’ that abortion is a state, not a federal issue.
Pressed whether he would commit to not restricting abortion pills, the president-elect said: ‘Well I commit’ but noted circumstances may change.
‘Do things change? I think they change,’ he went on, pointing to how President Biden pardoned his son Hunter Biden after repeatedly categorically committing otherwise.
‘I don’t like putting myself in a position like that,’ he said. ‘So, things do change, but I don’t think it’s going to change at all.’
Chemical abortion access was significantly expanded under the Biden administration, which permanently removed a requirement for the pills to be administered through in-person appointments and allowed the drugs to be delivered via mail or obtained at retail pharmacies like CVS or Walgreens.
In a statement sent to Fox News Digital, Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, said ‘unregulated, mail-order abortion drugs are a serious and growing threat to women’s health and safety, as well as the lives of countless unborn children, all across this country.’
While she criticized the ‘reckless actions’ of the Biden-Harris administration to expand abortion pill access, Dannenfelser said ‘no one who cares about the health and well-being of women can afford to ignore this issue.’
Referring to the recent high-profile deaths of Catherine Herring, Amber Thurman, Candi Miller and Alyona Dixon due to abortion pill complications, Dannenfelser said ‘even the pro-abortion media can’t hide that these drugs are killing women and fueling dangerous new forms of domestic violence.’
Kristan Hawkins, president of Students for Life Action, indicated she was optimistic about Trump seeing the danger of unrestricted chemical abortion access, telling Fox News Digital: ‘Many leaders are just now learning about how the pills harm women and the environment.’
‘We have a lot to talk about with the Trump-Vance administration,’ Hawkins said, adding, ‘President Trump has shown himself to be a reasonable leader who makes decisions based on the best information available.’
‘We hope to be agents of change, providing new information about how the changes made by the Biden-Harris administration on chemical abortion pill policy expose women to injury, infertility, and death, empowers abusers and allows for drinking water pollution through the flushing of medical waste,’ she said. ‘So, we look forward to a frank discussion about what three Democratic Party presidents did to help their friends in Big Abortion Pharma. We can’t wait to give President Trump the new information he needs to act.’
Meanwhile, Brian Burch, president of the conservative activism group ‘CatholicVote,’ told Fox News Digital that Trump’s admission that ‘things do change,’ signals ‘he would be open to addressing the overwhelming body of evidence that shows how harmful these drugs are to women.’
‘Big Pharma has exploited far too many women for too long, and the abortion industry should not get a pass when it comes to drug protocols and evidence-based regulations,’ he said. ‘Given President Trump’s pro-life record, together with the personnel he has nominated to key positions, we remain hopeful the new administration will take a serious look at these drugs and act accordingly.’