Jayd Henricks was the dynamic executive director of government relations for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops from 2011-2017. He recently shared his insights in a thought-provoking piece for the Wall Street Journal, titled “How the Pro-Life Democrat Went Extinct.”
In the second paragraph, Mr. Henricks writes, “Following action earlier this year by the House, the Senate recently voted on the Women’s Health Protection Act, a bill that would go far beyond Roe v. Wade by codifying into federal law the most extreme pro-abortion measures. Twelve out of 23 Catholics in the Senate voted for the bill, all of whom are Democrats.” Seventy-six out of 134 Catholics in the House voted for it, all of whom, once again, are Democrats.
He further asserts that “the Democratic Party, once a natural home for millions of Catholics, has become unwaveringly hostile to the Catholic citizen.”
While perusing his insightful op-ed, I was compelled to inquire how anyone, regardless of their religious affiliation or lack thereof, could possibly vote in favor of the Women’s Health Protection Act, which the National Right to Life organization has aptly dubbed the “Abortion without Limits until Birth Act.”
The near-unanimous endorsement of this abhorrent piece of legislation indicates that the Democratic Party has embraced abortion on demand to the point of indifference about the fate of abortion survivors.
A decade ago, I would have been dismissed as an alarmist. Fr. James Burtchaell was ahead of his time when he wrote that courts had begun to see the dividing line of birth as a border that an officer may disregard in hot pursuit.
Jayd Henricks offers a perceptive and faithful history of how and where the Democrats went wrong. He says, “How ironic that the Democratic Party, which is built around the defense of the weak and the marginalized, is so committed to the right to kill the most vulnerable.”
Daniel Miller is responsible for nearly all of National Right to Life News' political writing.
With the election of Donald Trump to the U.S. presidency, Daniel Miller developed a deep obsession with U.S. politics that has never let go of the political scientist. Whether it's the election of Joe Biden, the midterm elections in Congress, the abortion rights debate in the Supreme Court or the mudslinging in the primaries - Daniel Miller is happy to stay up late for you.
Daniel was born and raised in New York. After living in China, working for a news agency and another stint at a major news network, he now lives in Arizona with his two daughters.
