Vance urges anti-abortion activists to ‘be realistic’ and organize on the ‘state level’

(Washington Examiner) — Vice President JD Vance told the Washington Examiner the anti-abortion movement needs to “be realistic” about what is achievable in the national political environment and organize on getting wins at the state level.

Vance, who is the headline speaker at Friday’s March for Life in Washington, sat for a lengthy interview with the Washington Examiner on Thursday. During the interview, Vance said he knew there were “a lot of pro-life activists who wish that more would happen, who wish that more progress had been made.”

“I think that we have to accept that part of what we need to do is persuade our fellow Americans in order to achieve pro-life victories,” Vance said.

“Most of what’s going to happen over the next generation of the pro-life movement is we’re going to have to win victories at the state level,” the vice president added. “I think we can do that. I think we should organize and mobilize for that. But I think we have to be realistic with ourselves that, right now, the American people are not endorsing a lot of pro-life policy.”

Vance said that was a “terrible tragedy” but that it also meant the anti-abortion movement had to act strategically.

“I’m focused on changing it, and I think that’s what we have to think, ‘How do we win?’” the vice president said. “The pro-life movement goes nowhere if we make really good arguments that lose at the ballot box. We’ve got to figure out how to win.”

Vance argued that President Donald Trump has been “the most successfully pro-life president in American history.” He noted that the administration has continued the Mexico City policy, which bars federal funding for international nongovernmental organizations that conduct abortions.

Ahead of the March for Life, the Trump administration announced that funding from the National Institutes of Health will no longer go toward research or grants that use aborted fetal tissue. The Small Business Administration also announced it will review whether Planned Parenthood illegally received $88 million in pandemic-era loans.

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(Originally published by the Washington Examiner)

(National Review) — This edition of National Review’s pro-life newsletter is going to be short and sweet, as they say. As much as I pray for bilocation, it is not something I’ve been blessed/burdened with as of yet. So there needs to be a balance in my running around the nation’s capital and filing my column! The reality of being at a magazine and journalistic think tank? First world problems.

Such problems do, though, include the reality of legal abortion in America. And while the Trump administration headlines at the March for Life today, and listened to pro-lifers on Thursday, it leaves much to be desired. As I’ve noted here before, the only reason abortion opponents are celebrating the closing of abortion clinics is because the abortion industry doesn’t need abortion clinics anymore. Your CVS. Your Walgreens. Your local pharmacy. Those are the abortion clinics now. And even in states where abortion is illegal, women know how to get pills by mail. And we are a year into the second Trump administration, and the means of the majority of abortions in the United States do not appear to be remotely a priority. Is that shocking? No. Take it from a gal who lost her innocence reading about Donald Trump on the front page of the New York Post back in the day. Pro-lifers, please, don’t pretend this is the most pro-life administration ever.

I was on Catholic radio this week, and a caller complained that George W. Bush was surrounded by abortion advocates, especially the women in his life. Which makes what he did on embryonic stem cells, just before the 9/11 attack on the United States, all the more courageous. I want men to defend innocent human life. And women! Because women deserve better than abortion.

I had the blessing of hosting a book event for Leigh Snead in Washington, D.C., on Thursday about her new book, Infertile but Fruitful: Finding Fulfillment When You Can’t Conceive. There’s a sacred pause necessary whenever this topic comes up, because it is so painful. And yet, at the gathering at the Franciscan University of Steubenville’s new D.C. outpost, it was clear how grateful women are for other women willing to vulnerably discuss the issue. The pressure is so great to choose IVF or even surrogacy. And yet children even in our own country are languishing in foster care, maybe not even knowing they can pray for a forever family.

The March for Life features JD Vance. That’s hard to tolerate, given some of what he’d said about abortion pills — even mischaracterizing a Supreme Court case because Donald Trump did. He knows better. So do we.

That said, congratulations on the Vances’ pregnancy!

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(Originally published by the National Review)

(National Catholic Register) — Tens of thousands of pro-life advocates gathered in the nation’s capital Friday for the 53rd annual March for Life, marching from the National Mall to the Supreme Court to voice their opposition to abortion.

This year’s event unfolded under unusually mild January weather, allowing participants to move steadily through the streets of Washington, even as the city prepares for a potentially paralyzing winter storm later in the weekend.

Vice President JD Vance, speaking for the second consecutive year, told those gathered that he and his wife, Usha, are expecting their fourth child, a third son, in late July, a personal note that drew hearty cheers from the crowd.

Vance leaned into his message that pro‑life advocacy is not just about legal arguments but a broader cultural affirmation of life.

“Let the record show you have a vice president who practices what he preaches,” he said, referencing his family’s news while framing family life as central to the cause.

Partway through his remarks, a heckler began shouting about the administration’s failure to ban the abortion pill, which accounts for more than 60% of abortions in the U.S. and has been the subject of recent criticism of the Trump administration by pro-life advocates.

Vance acknowledged the interruption calmly, noting that “inevitably there will be debates within this movement … they help keep people like me honest,” not saying “abortion pill” but rather emphasizing that internal disagreements should never distract from the larger mission of protecting life.

He walked through a broader narrative of progress from the 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision, which overturned Roe v. Wade, and the administration’s policy shifts. Vance reminded the crowd that “we’re marching for life because we want our fellow Americans … to know that life is worthy of protection. That is why we march today,” adding that they have “an ally in the White House.”

Catholic speaker Sarah Hurm followed the political remarks, sharing her own journey through unplanned pregnancy, a reversal ministry, and the joy she found in carrying her son to term. She urged those present to see support for life not just in large demonstrations but in the everyday actions of community and care. “Saving a life can be as simple as answering a phone call, driving a friend to an ultrasound, or helping pick out a car seat. … You have that power. Be that person who connects a woman to hope,” she told the crowd.

Shortly after the rally concluded, lines of marchers began to move. The rally quickly became a flowing procession down Constitution Avenue, with clergy and congregations, school groups and young adults all advancing as one. Prayers intermingled with hymns, and people walked with intent — some in silence, others discussing the day ahead.

Students from Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio, and Lourdes Academy in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, walked with focus and energy. Franciscan student Sarah Gacka, a junior, said her passion was stirred by her younger brother, who is autistic, reminding people that “defending life includes advocating for those with special needs.”

Lourdes Academy high schooler Trent Krueger described traveling from Wisconsin to honor the choice his mother made years ago to place a sibling for adoption after an unplanned pregnancy at 19, calling it the “best decision she ever made.”

Religious communities added spiritual depth, as they’ve done for the past 53 years.

Father Rhett Williams, University of South Carolina chaplain, talked about bringing students to see “the universal Church in action,” demonstrating how the Church’s teaching on life resonates across generations.

Daniel Floyd of Atlanta carried a second‑class relic of St. Michael the Archangel from Italy, a symbol of spiritual resolve for many in the march. Consisting of stones from the Sanctuary of Monte Sant’Angelo in Gargano, Italy — a place where St. Michael purportedly appeared around A.D. 490 — the relic served as a “spiritual reflection” of the fearless leader of heaven’s armies.

Along the route, volunteers and representatives from various organizations handed out resources aimed at supporting women with unplanned pregnancies, families in need of practical help, and those seeking guidance on next steps. Information packets, service referrals and quiet conversations underscored that advocacy at the March for Life extends beyond public demonstration into ongoing community support.

As marchers reached the Supreme Court, the line stretched for blocks. Feet moved in cadence, voices rose in prayer and the shared sense of purpose was unmistakable. Hymns being sung, Rosaries being prayed, and quiet reflection marked the journey as much as the speeches earlier in the day.

This year’s March for Life was marked not only by its robust turnout but by its intergenerational and deeply personal character. The blend of high-profile speakers and individual testimonies — from political leaders to students and families — gave the event a distinct texture.

Hurm’s exhortation to personal action echoed in the steps of those walking, while students spoke of lifelong commitment and lived faith. Across the crowd, the message was both public and intimately personal: Life is worthy, and advocacy for it takes many forms.

“This march is not just about a law or a court case,” Hurm said. “It’s about showing that life is worth fighting for in every way we can.”

As the day wound down, participants made their way back to buses, cars and trains. Conversations continued about what the march had meant for them, where support was most needed, and how to sustain momentum in their local communities. For many students, the experience was transformative — walking beside generations of pro-life advocates, absorbing the shared sense of mission.

Parents saw their children engage with the issues in meaningful ways. Longtime marchers witnessed the persistence of a movement that continues to adapt and evolve with the times. Conversations about strategy, outreach and next steps didn’t stop simply because the march ended; they shifted into action plans for the weeks and months ahead.

From young students to seasoned activists, the message from the 53rd annual March for Life was clear and unmistakable: Life matters, and the work to defend it does not stop.

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(Originally published by the National Catholic Register)

(Vatican News) — Extending a warm greeting to the thousands set to participate in the 2026 March for Life in Washington, D.C., in the United States, Pope Leo XIV assured them all of his spiritual closeness in a message.

He added his heartfelt appreciation for this “eloquent public witness to affirm that ‘the protection of the right to life constitutes the indispensable foundation of every other human right’.”

Referring to his address to members of the Diplomatic Corps Accredited to the Holy See early this month, the Pope outlined what a healthy and truly progressive society looks like—“it safeguards the sanctity of human life and works actively to promote it.”

With this in mind, he encouraged young people in particular to continue working to ensure that life is respected and protected in all its stages “through appropriate efforts at every level of society, including dialogue with civil and political leaders.”

Pope Leo prayed that Jesus will accompany all those who peacefully march on behalf of the unborn. “By advocating for them”, he said, “please know that you are fulfilling the Lord’s command to serve him in the least of our brothers and sisters.”

Closing his message, the Pope entrusted all the participants, and all who support them through prayer and sacrifice, to Mary Immaculate—the Patroness of the United States of America.

52 years of the March

The first March for Life took place in January 1974—solemnly marking the one-year anniversary of the United States’ Supreme Court decision to legalize abortion. Its goal: lobby Congressional leadership to find a legislative solution to the ruling Roe v. Wade.

50 years later, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade with the historic Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case. This gave states more freedom to enact pro-life laws.

With this, the focus of the March for Life has shifted. “The goal of the national March for Life is to not only change laws at the state and federal level, but to change the culture to ultimately make abortion unthinkable,” according to the March’s official website.

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(Originally published by the Vatican News)