Evangelical Christians as a majority have been casting their votes for Republican candidates for decades. This is mainly because they are pro-life, meaning they are anti-abortion. They believe that life begins at conception and killing an unborn baby is murder in the eyes of God. For this reason alone, many Christians are held hostage by the Republican party. Republicans promise to reverse Roe v. Wade and end abortion, and many Christians feel they have to vote for a pro-life candidate, regardless of what other positions the party holds.
This election is no different. The words and policies of Donald Trump are nowhere close to lining up with Christian values and ideals. Trump isolates minorities and shows hatred towards a multitude of demographics. He has based his campaign on fear and the ridicule of his opponents. In this election, the ideals of the Republican presidential candidate are far removed from the ideals that we should have as Christians. However, many Christians are going to hold their noses and vote for Trump because they feel they have no other option. They believe they have to vote pro-life.
But what if I told you that Hillary Clinton is more of a pro-life candidate than Donald Trump? You would probably laugh in my face and point to the final Presidential debate in which Hillary unashamedly supported Planned Parenthood and the woman’s right to choose. If you consider a pro-life position as purely anti-abortion, then you would be right. However, what if being pro-life meant more than being anti-abortion? What if pro-life meant supporting low-income families who have children they cannot afford? What if being pro-life meant that supporting the fight against hunger and poverty? What if being pro-life meant standing up to racism, bigotry, and homophobia and treating every human being as a unique individual created by God? While I agree that abortion is immoral and very few people would rejoice over it, abortion is not the only facet of life. Life does begin at conception, but it continues far after birth. In order to be truly pro-life, you must care about people and want to foster life at all stages, regardless of whether that life belongs to an unborn baby or a refugee fleeing civil war in Syria.
So, now that we have considered a fully pro-life stance, we must ask ourselves which candidate is truly pro-life. We must look at their actions, their policies, and their ideals to make this decision. Which candidate shows the most concern for human life and wants to foster opportunity and success for all people?
Donald Trump has been labeled as the pro-life candidate, but do his attitudes, policies, and statements line up with his pro-life label? How does Donald Trump treat the poor and refugees? How does Donald Trump view minorities? If we look at these aspects of Donald Trump, will we see a pro-life candidate, or will we see someone who only believes that abortion “should be up to the states,” as he said in his last debate?
Three of the biggest policies in this debate are tax rates, healthcare, and immigration. Trump wants to raise tax rates for the poorest Americans, while lowering them on the rich. He wants to repeal Obamacare, which has provided coverage to over 17 million previously uninsured Americans, and he also wants to deport all illegal immigrants and close borders to refugees. None of these policies benefit the welfare and safety of the people it affects, nor do they give Americans the opportunity to succeed. The only policy of Donald Trump’s which is pro-life is his abortion policy.
Hillary Clinton, on the other hand, has been widely publicized as not being a pro-life candidate. While she is pro-choice on the topic of abortion, many of her other policies are pro-life. Almost all of Hillary’s policies have the goal of providing opportunity to all Americans. She wants to create safe and affordable housing for low-income families. She wants to improve secondary education and make higher education affordable for all people. She wants to put policies in place that will improve family life and allow low-income people to take care of their children. She wants to improve Obamacare and make it more affordable for all Americans. She wants stricter background checks for gun purchases to ensure that the wrong people do not have guns. She wants to improve rights for people with physical and intellectual disabilities. She wants to give a pathway to citizenship for immigrants, while enforcing current border control policies to keep the nation safe. She wants to welcome harmless Syrian refugees to keep them safe from war. Hillary’s policies show concern for people of all demographics and foster opportunity in their lives. Her policies will improve the quality of life in our nation and fight to end poverty. Hillary’s policies actually foster an environment where people do not feel the need to get an abortion because they feel they can provide for their children. The vast majority of Hillary’s policies are pro-life, and she deserves credit for that.
In conclusion, as a pro-life Christian, you have two choices. You can pick the anti-abortion candidate whose policies do nothing to show compassion or help those in unfortunate situations, or you can pick the candidate who is pro-choice but wants to give opportunity to Americans in all walks of life and create a life-affirming environment of safety and prosperity. It’s up to you.
By: Caleb Byrd, Staff Writer
