On abortion, both Biden and the pro-life movement lack moral consistency

On abortion, both Biden and the pro-life movement lack moral consistency

The bishops are not as concerned about moral consistency on life teaching as they are in moral consistency about sexual ethics. Likewise, pro-life Republicans are more concerned with fighting socialism than they are about the unborn. Their other goal is to take control of all social policy from the federal courts, especially regarding race and immigration, than they are about the unborn. Details below the fold.

There is absolutely no way to give legal protection to the unborn in the first trimester. Roe cannot be overturned in such a way to give the decision back to the states, both from the point of view of the rights of women (which states are lousy at protecting) and because doing so would take us back to the days of Plessy, where states had primacy for all equal protection and due process issues - essentially that states are the proper place for interpreting 14th Amendment law. The pro-life movement is simply state power dressed up as concern for the unborn. The real goals of such power are to control gays and immigrants.

While the Congress could, theoretically, recognize first trimester embryos and fetuses as legal persons, doing so would open up women to punishment for killing a legal person, require the registration of pregnancy and investigation, or at least case review of any lost pregnancy. This cannot happen either. There are too many due process problems for Congress to do anything that the Supreme Court would allow.

The desire to protect the unborn is emotionalism, which is not a good way to make public policy. Not now, not ever. It is the same kind of weak tea as "witnessing to life." 

The only thing that can be done for the unborn is what the Biden-Harris Administration is actually proposing, refundable child tax credits (although only for a year as part of COVID recovery) and increasing the amount to $3000 (or $250 a month per child). Families with three children or more can claim a refundable credit, but these amounts are still paltry.

The President needs to patiently teach the bishops and voters that there is no criminal option in fighting abortion. Until he does that, the pro-life movement will find another useful idiot to take the place of Trump as a pro-life president. A Catholic Republican would have a better chance of making the bishops listen, but that does not rescue us from the heart of Trumpism.

There are those in pro-life movement who regard any child credit as paying people to have children, or subsidizing sexuality. They seem unaware that support for families is bipartisan. The only question is whether the funding is adequate. It still is not under the Biden proposals, but at least it is an improvement. 

If the bishops stand behind the Biden-Harris tax provisions and force the National Right Committee to rank them as a must support measure, Catholic Republicans may support it too. I doubt this will happen, because they would rather force abstinence as part of a consistent sexual ethic. Combined with those who believe that economic support for families is socialism, it is no wonder that feminists conclude that the pro-life movement is more about controlling women's bodies than reducing abortion.