Standing in the Indian Treaty Room of the White House on Thursday evening, Vice President Mike Pence declared to a room of March for Life participants that President Donald Trump is the “most pro-life president in American history.”
Before introducing the vice president, second lady Karen Pence took a few moments to share the couple’s past six year struggle with infertility and time on an adoption list. She then recalled her husband’s record as a very pro-adoption governor of Indiana.
After praising the work of “the late and great Nellie Gray And her worthy successor, the president of the March for Life, our friend, Jeanne Mancini,” Pence brought of Students for Life leaders up behind the podium with him, calling on the audience to applaud their work. With each of them gathered on stage, Pence lauded their work, stating, “I truly believe, with all of my heart, this is the pro-life generation in America.”
The vice president reminded those gathered that Saturday marks one year since “we swore in the most pro-life president in American history.” He credited the pro-life advocates for that event.
“In one of his very first acts, our president reinstated the Mexico City policy,” said Pence. He was met with applause after stating, “He expanded it to cover $9 billion in foreign aid, so that no taxpayer dollars will fund organizations that promote abortion around the world.”
More applause rose when Pence reminded the crowd, “We’ve stopped U.S. funding for the United Nations Population Fund so that American taxpayer dollars won’t support abortion in countries like China.”
Pence added that he was “honored,” as President of the U.S. Senate, to cast the tie-breaking vote that allowed states to defund Planned Parenthood.
On Friday, President Trump will become the first American president in history to address the March for Life.
Also present at the Thursday evening reception were Trump administration officials Andrew Bremberg and Kellyanne Conway. Each were applauded by the crowd.
As he has many times over the past year, Pence declared, “life is winning in America.” He credited that to the “faithfulness and prayers” of those in the room, to “the generosity of adoptive families,” to “the compassion of caregivers and volunteers at crisis pregnancy centers,” and to “the quiet counsels between mothers and daughters, between grandmothers and granddaughters.”
“I truly believe, in this generation, we will restore the sanctity of life to the center of American law once again,” Pence declared to the applause of the pro-life activists.
He closed by saying:
“You know, I’ve long believed that a society can be judged by how it deals with its most vulnerable — the aged, the infirm, the disabled, and the unborn. Your compassion, your perseverance — it’s made a difference for the most vulnerable in our society. And because of all of you, I truly believe the day will come, because of your efforts and prayers, with pro-life majorities in our Congress, with President Donald Trump in the White House, I know America will choose life, once again.”
At the 2017 March for Life Pence became the first vice president to address the event. On Friday at 12:15pm ET President Trump is scheduled to address the 2018 March for Life through live video from the White House Rose Garden.
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