President Biden Will Force You To Pay for International Abortions

It’s only been a week under the Biden Administration, yet a signal has already been sent regarding priorities. While Americans struggle to provide for their families and American businesses struggle to survive, President Biden, in a callous move, has decided to revoke the Mexico City Policy.

The pro-life policy implemented by President Ronald Reagan in 1984 restricts foreign NGOs from receiving federal funding (our hard-earned tax dollars) if they perform or promote abortion as a method of family planning in other nations. Under President Trump, the policy was reinstated, expanded, and renamed Protecting Life in Global Health Assistance (PLGHA).

The first step in the process to revoke this critical pro-life policy is expected to come Thursday, January 28, 2021, in the form of an Executive order from President Biden.  Dr. Anthony Fauci announced its revocation at the end of last week, stating that “President Biden will be revoking the Mexico City Policy in the coming days, as part of his broader commitment to protect women’s health and advance gender equality at home and around the world.”

As a woman, I find that statement disturbing for many reasons. For starters, it’s ironic that Dr. Fauci (who is the Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, which has nothing to do with abortion policy) made the announcement for the Administration. Fauci (now President Biden’s Chief Medical Advisor), a doctor who we would all hope is truly dedicated to saving and protecting life, is wholly supporting the intentional killing of unborn babies all over the world, while making the American taxpayer pay for it. Shameful! We have repeatedly pointed out the harms of abortion to women, and I find it repugnant that instead of providing for the urgent needs of Americans, one of the first priorities of this new Administration is to send our hard-earned tax money overseas to kill unborn babies. And, unlike in domestic policy where the abortion industry has to play shell games and accounting tricks to get around the Hyde Amendment which bans (with few exceptions) the direct funding of abortions in the U.S., the Biden Administration’s actions will allow for the direct funding of abortions internationally.

President Biden has claimed that he wants to bring unity, but just who is he pandering to by revoking the Mexico City Policy? Not the overwhelming majority of Americans who oppose U.S. tax dollars being used to fund abortion overseas, which, by the way, includes 56% of Democrats.  So, I am confused why the Biden Administration is set on revoking a policy that an overwhelming majority of Americans, including Democrats, support. This is an issue where we actually have unity and yet the Biden Administration is completely ignoring the American people. It’s not hard to guess who the Biden Administration is unified with on this move, as it’s definitely not the American people.

If the Biden Administration, including Dr. Fauci, were truly concerned about protecting women and bringing unity, they would reinstate the PLGHA plan. This is a policy the ACLJ supported the expansion of in our public comment where we began by pointing to the obvious, that “[o]ur nation was founded on the principle that human beings have God-given, inalienable rights as stated in the Declaration of Independence: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” We concluded by urging adoption of the rule, stating:

The PLGHA plan is absolutely crucial to preventing the use of American taxpayer dollars for the performance and promotion of abortion and abortion-related activities (such as biomedical research and sterilization) in foreign nations. The Rule is consistent with both the original Executive Order and with Federal law, and contrary to what some may believe, the plan does not reduce family planning funding overseas nor does it cripple women in their fight for reproductive rights. The PLGHA plan merely ensures that federal funds are not used to promote a practice that many Americans find repugnant and that many foreign nations still oppose.

As you know, we not only advocate for life in the United States, we also do so internationally. Through our European Centre for Law and Justice (ECLJ), we recently submitted a written contribution to the U.N. Working Group on Discrimination against Women and Girls where we once again pointed out the harms of abortion and concluded by stating:

Women and girls around the world face a myriad of crises and challenges – and their needs should be met, not exploited. Abortion, or “sexual and reproductive health” as termed by many, is a tool often used to contribute to crisis, not aid in halting it. Thus, it is incumbent upon individual countries, international bodies, and organizations to focus on the real needs of women and girls in crisis, such as access to food, clean water, shelter, safety, etc. As has been made clear above, pro-abortion advocates are exploiting humanitarian crises to further their agenda – an agenda not supported by a majority of countries. Guarding against the intrusion of pro-abortion agendas on state sovereignty is in no way contrary to international law which guarantees the right to life. In fact, international law obliges Member States not only to protect human life without discrimination, but also to prevent the use of abortion as an exploitive means, and to protect families. This includes the obligation of Member States to protect against the exploitation and coercion of vulnerable women and girls, and the obligation of each state to value the lives of the unborn. In light of the above, the ECLJ recommends measures of support for women facing unexpected pregnancies. This support, instead of being primarily or sometimes solely directed to “abortion services”, should be redirected for the funding of social and medical assistance for the follow-up of pregnancies, for births, health care and social help, in order to truly help women in situation of crisis. Every human life, from conception to natural death, deserves to be protected because of its inherent worth and dignity.

We, at the ACLJ, will never give up advocating for life and defending the most innocent among us. We call on the new Administration to honor its commitment to unity and stand with the majority of Americans who believe that our tax dollars should not be used to fund abortions overseas. We will also do everything within our power through the law, advocacy, and by petitioning the government for redress of grievances as outlined in the First Amendment, to stop the expansive funding of abortion, including submitting formal public comments should the Biden Administration take regulatory action to roll back the PLGHA and its accompanying pro-life regulations.  Please join us in urging the Administration to respect life and to reinstate the PLGHA plan.