Life is Winning: Celebrating 4 Years of Pro-Life Accomplishments.
Transcript
We celebrate life, president. Thank you. He well the team. I will say the team was a little worried this morning that with a pandemic and an ice storm that you guys may not show up, but I said, listen, these air, the warriors for life, they will be here. So thank you so much. Amen. Well, good afternoon, everyone. And thank you for joining us today. As you can see, we’ve just got the all stars. Uh, I get to be the lucky one to moderate, but really, the vice president is hosting this event. He has obviously the champion for this issue for basically his entire life. But really, truly, it’s been a team effort. And what an honor it is to have so many of you, all of our friends from the pro life movement every single one of you was invited to be here because of your leadership in defending the most vulnerable in our society. And that is Thea unborn. And because of your strong partnership with us in proclaiming the dignity of human life thank you for your dedication. Thank you for your partnership. Thank you for your relentless nous. Thank you. for your tireless, tireless effort. I know so many of you have spent a lifetime, Ah, lifetime focusing on this issue. And what a blessing these last four years have been. A. We moved that issue forward to protect life. Today we are here to celebrate. We want toe, lift up the dignity of life and raise a toast of sorts to what has been accomplished together. Over the past four years, President Trump and Vice President Pence have been champions of the pro life movement and will go down in history as the most pro life administration in all of American history. They made promises like many elected officials do. But unlike most, they delivered on those promises and then did Mawr. On the president’s third day in office, he reinstated the Mexico City policy and later expanded it, setting an example for the world that it is possible to Maine a strong maintain a strong commitment to funding women’s health programming without compromising pro life principles. He took action last year to curtail federally funded research using human fetal tissue from elective abortions. After over 25 years of taxpayer money thrown away on empty promises that this morally bankrupt research would result in cures that never materialized. He has protected Americans conscious rights like never before and has nominated over 260 constitutionalist judges confirmed by the Senate. By the way, Senator Lankford, Senator Daines, thank you for being here with us today on did, including three Supreme Court judges. Today we will hear much more about the administration’s historic pro life accomplishments. But again, we could not have done it without you. And without your help, your suggestions you’re supports. Perhaps most importantly, your prayers and your partnership. We’re proud of what we have accomplished together. But this fight is not over and we will never give up. I look forward to continuing to stand shoulder to shoulder with all of you and stand for life. Our first speaker today and your host for this event obviously needs no introduction. And I know many of you have worked many, many years alongside this man. A Z He fought for freedom and for life and for all that is good and righteous with the American dream are incredible. Vice President Mike Pence, please help me. Welcome to the rodeo. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you all very much today is is really about really about celebrating progress we’ve made in the cause for life and also thanking the leaders that have gathered in this room and all of you that would be looking on Livestream around the country for the way that you’ve stood. You stood for life for the last four years and I promise you we will never stop fighting for the right to life on and on behalf of the President of the United States and the first Family. Welcome to the White House. It’s good to have you here on a blustery day and good to be here with so many very special people. But as I begin, allow me to bring greetings because you all have been very kind to me today. Let me bring greetings from a man who from early on in this administration and is a candidate, made it clear that he would stand up for the sanctity of human life. Allow me, Thio give you the opportunity to thank the most pro life president in American history. I bring greetings from President Donald Trump in, uh, even before our inauguration four years ago, President Trump wrote Thio, the speaker of the House of Representatives. In words that I believe are well to reflect on the day, he said. I believe it is the most basic duty of government to guard the innocents. With that in mind, he made it clear. And he said, I will veto any legislation that weakens current per life federal policies or encourages the destruction of innocents human life at any stage. And President Donald Trump has kept his word every single day. E wanted to thank all of you on the president’s behalf and on my own behalf for all that each one of you have done in the cause of life over the last four years. You’ll hear from this podium today the milestones that we’ve marked together. It’s all been because of all of you and because of the literally tens of millions of Americans who have labored in the cause for life since that dark day in 19 and 73 their specific heroes in the room that I want to acknowledge you are with us today to be able to serve in the role of vice president. You also get to be president of the Senate. You get an up close look. Members of the United States Senate. You see their values. When the cameras air off, you see their principles, and they’re probably no to Mawr stalwart conservatives in the United States Senate. No to greater champions for the right to life than Senator James Lankford and Senator Steve Daines. Would you join me in thanking the both of them for their great leadership for life? Okay, let’s get him. There’s a woman in the room who I got to know when she was a staff director for the Pro Life Caucus in Congress. She is, uh, has emerged as maybe one of the most effective pro life leaders in the United States of America. Join me in thanking Marjorie Dannenfelser on on. He did some time in the House of Representatives and in the United States Senate, and now he’s emerged as one of the leading voices for life and liberty around the country. On he’s never changed. Senator Jim DeMint. Thank you so much for your strong stand for this movement all these many years, you know that’s what you want and let me also let me also acknowledge someone who worked back in the Reagan administration, uh, was broke. You’ll be glad to know was a chief domestic policy adviser. He would go on. And organizations like the Family Research Council focus on the family. Now president of American values and a stalwart and eloquent champion for life, Gary Bauer. We thank you for your leadership and your support. But we’re joined today by more than members of more than 20 pro life organizations who supported President Trump in our administration, cause for life all along the way. And so again, our thanks to the Susan B. Anthony list to Students for Life to March for life action to focus on the family, too concerned Women for America, Family Research Council and all of you who have organized and mobilized around America for the sanctity of life. Give yourselves a round of applause. Would you e well, like all of you gathered here today? I’ve long believed that a society can be judged by how it deals with its most vulnerable the agent, the infirm, the disabled and the unborn President Trump said early in our administration that I quote every person is worth protecting. Every human life born and unborn has made in the holy image of Almighty God in this administration has always been about life, and that’s been evident in the last year as our nation has passed through this challenging time of a global pandemic. When the president asked me to leave the White House coronavirus task force, I’ll never forget the day he said, Mike, I want you to step down. I want you to work with our outstanding health leadership all across this administration across the country with one mission, and that was to save lives. We launched the greatest national mobilization since World War two. We reinvented testing. Some 200 million tests have been performed across America, some two million a day. We saw the production and the distribution of literally billions of supplies of personal protective equipment. And all along the way, this president and this team, we’re in a relentless drive to save lives. We created medicines in record speed, and as the world learned last week, we have come to the beginning of the end of the coronavirus pandemic, and people are already receiving the first safe and effective coronavirus vaccine all across America. Secretaries are and I were in Indiana yesterday at a distribution facility and manufacturing plant that that will, with the approval of FDA, we hope this week literally be distributing Million’s mawr of a new vaccine that could well be approved for the American people. I mentioned all of that today because it is just emblematic of an administration that is counted the lives of everyone of our citizens, precious and important, that’s animated our response to this pandemic. But it’s animated. The progress that we’ve made in this administration, every step of the way in the cause for life is Brook just mentioned when the president took office. One of the very first things he did was reinstate the Mexico City policy and in government funding for promoting abortions around the world. And before long we expanded it to more countries and more policies on the planet. And he gave me the great privilege in our very first month in office to be the first vice president in history to ever address the march for life on the National Mall, and this last January, he did it himself. President Trump spoke to the march for life before we took office. You all know that the largest abortion provider in America, was also the largest recipient of federal funding under Title 10, The year before we took office, we actually witnessed, along with the American people the the undercover videos that showed horrific conversations about the sale and transfer of parts of aborted babies. It’s just unconscionable. But thanks to President Trump’s leadership in March of 2017, I had the honor of casting the tie breaking vote in the United States Senate to allow every state in America to defund Planned Parenthood, and President Trump signed it into law on putting that priority on the unborn. Just last summer, with strong support of leaders in this room and the and the full support of our secretary of health and human service, President Trump ended fetal tissue research at the National Institutes for Health. We will always stand for the right toe life and the dignity of the unborn eso. We’ve made great progress all along the way, but perhaps, uh, it’s altogether fitting with two these two great senators in the room and one former senator of the room to talk about the really extraordinary progress that we’ve made in the courts across this land as a candidate President Trump promised. The American people, he said, Quote. I will protect life. And the biggest way you could protect it is through the Supreme Court and putting people in the court, he said. And he promised, I will appoint judges that will be pro life, and that’s just what he’s done. A Z, Brooks said. With yesterday’s confirmation of the judge that will fill the seat of the newest justice on the Supreme Court, President Trump has appointed more than 220 conservatives to our federal courts at every level, including Justice Neil Gorsuch, Justice Spread Cavanaugh and Justice Amy Coney Barrett on, I promise You, having had the opportunity to meet so many of these not just the justices, but the judges. Every one of these men and women are principled conservatives who will uphold all the God given liberties enshrine in our founding documents and in our bill of Rights. It’s truly a legacy that will reach generations, and it’s a testament to what each one of you have done your support for this administration, your council, along the way, as those decisions were made by our president, whether it be in policies and health whether it be in whether it be in a decisions that were made about appointments to the court. I hope you all know believe with all my heart that everyone in this room right along with our president has made a difference for life. So today we really gathered to reflect on the great progress we’ve made for life under President Donald Trump and with all of your collective support, but also Thio to thank all of you and urge you as we promise to never stop fighting for the cause for life. I believe that we have demonstrated over these past four years is that when men and women who cherish the sanctity of life come together, let their voices be heard when we rally behind great leaders at every level who will stand without apology for life, we could make extraordinary progress. And I truly do believe if all of us continue to do all that we can in the months and the years ahead, we will see the sanctity of life restored to the center of American law in our time, I truly believe it. So all the champions for life thank you for all you’ve done behalf of the president on behalf. Our entire administration. We’re grateful to each and every one of you. And it’s been our great honor to serve alongside you and we’ll continue to fight alongside with you for all the time that we have in all my days that remain on this earth, I will always stand for life, and I’ll always stand with each and every one of you. That’s my solemn promise. And it’s not just about not just about each one of you. I know what all of you know is, well that he who said before I formed you in the womb I knew you is about life and we do well in this movement. Always remind ourselves that when we make the cause for life our cause, we make his work on this earth our very own. So do not grow weary and doing well, because in the last four years we’ve shown when men and women of faith and conviction come together to stand up for the unborn, to speak out for the voiceless. Life can win in America, and with your help and God’s help, life will keep on winning in the United States. of America. Thank you all very much. God bless you on honor to be with you today. Do you ever get the feeling that I think, ladies and gentlemen, we’d like to take this opportunity to remind everyone that mask are encouraged, especially with social distance cannot be maintained in accordance with health and safety guidelines. We thank you for your assistance and for braving the elements to be here with us today and to celebrate life. Vice President Pence. I know I speak for everyone here. I know. I speak for those behind me on the stage. I know I speak for the thousands watching on the livestream that your leadership and your conviction and your heart and your love for our lord and everything that you have lived your life believing in and standing for has truly changed America and your servant leadership to this country, to the president, to all of us eyes really inspiring. So thank you again. And please help me thank our amazing vice President. Okay. Uh, Mr Vice President, we know you have a task force in some vaccines. You might have to step away, but we know hopefully you’ll come back because There’s a presentation for you towards the end of our our together. So I just feel free to do that. Uh, this time it’s my great honor Thio introduce. And by the way, I will tell you she was a last minute addition on dso Kayleigh. McEnany joined this administration. It seems like years ago. But it was just this year. Wow, What a star! What an amazing defender of freedom and liberty and life and everything that this President and Vice President have stood for and led for. So when we called her literally about 30 minutes ago and said Kaylee, we would love to have you join this group. You have become such a face for what is righteous and good in this country. And God bless her without hesitation. She said I would love to. So with that, please help me. Welcome are amazing. Press Secretary Kayleigh Mcenany to the state. Thank you. Thank you all so much for being here. Thank you for the work you dio because the work that you dio enables the work that we dio and to me when I’m often asked, you know what is the most important accomplishment off this president it is. Hands down what he has done for the judiciary. It is hands down the fact that we have freedom loving justices and judges across this country for many purposes to protect our liberties, one among them that is central to the element of our founding documents. And that is life. And we can thank President Donald Trump for that. And I can tell you, you know, as a new mom, I have a one year old. She just turned one on November 22nd of this year. Uh, this issue, which I’ve been passionate about from a young age pro life has become real to me, and I will never forget the day I found out I was pregnant. I did a C SPAN interview and I walked away and I went home to my apartment. I was working at the Trump campaign at the time, and I found out I was pregnant and I told my husband over FaceTime because that’s how we’ve had to do things over the last four years. And it was an exciting moment. He was pretty shocked and excited, nevertheless, and I spent my time at the Trump campaign being pregnant while also traveling the country. And I’ll never forget having that first ultrasound, which my husband got to be a part of. We don’t always get to go together to things, but he was there for that. And to see that beautiful image of what would soon become Baby Blake. She’s become known on social media. Ah, tear rolled down my eye, and I was not expecting that because that was a really baby. Just weeks into my pregnancy and an issue that I had been so passionate about from a young age became materially riel in my life and each ultrasound as you approached and you’ve got the gender and you learn that this beautiful baby was on her way to do the three D ultrasound, where you could just see every element. I saw her hand. I’ll never forget her hand. Amazing moment in my life. I saw her leg I saw in three D. It was just a beautiful experience that we know today that babies are babies at the moment off conception. No excuses. And it is not about a woman’s right to choose. It is about a human beings, right to live E. And I’ll tell you, my daughter, she’s so beautiful. I’ll never forget how accommodating this president has been from the very beginning. Baby Blake, after she was born, went toe Iowa with me. This is when I was on the campaign in New Hampshire and South Carolina and North Carolina. She has more immunities than anyone because she’s been on so many planes. But when I got this job is press secretary. I knew it would be a tough one because I was a new mom and wanting to not miss a single moment of her life. And I’ll never forget. After I got the title of press secretary holding Blake and I started to cry because I was like, I’m gonna miss my little baby and my tears started to fall on her face and all of a sudden she let out, I swear was her first smile, and it was God’s way of saying, You go do what you need to dio, and I’ll tell you what this president did When he first offered me the job, he said, This is your daughter going to be okay because he is a president that supports moms. He’s a president that supports life, and there’s been no greater partner for him in that endeavor. Then Vice President Pence, who’s been an unmistakable voice for life from the very beginning. So I want to thank you for being here and thank you for all that you do because it’s your work that enables this to happen and appreciate. I mean, just the other day I went to go find pro life Bible verses. I Google it focus on the family, pops up, has, like 23 eso you guys make our task very easy. Eso Thank you so much for all that you dio. Thank you. I am so glad Kelly mentioned that because I’m a mom of four. And, of course, Ivanka has three Children. Kellyanne, before she left, has her four Children. Uh, the amount of working moms and our kids running through the West Wing. If only America could see that, right? If only America could. No, that the support of this president and the vice president for life, which is why we’re all here gathered to celebrate. But for Children of all ages to be a part of this extraordinary time we’ve had in the White House. Caylee, you are amazing. Thank you so much. And thank you for your sacrifice. Uh, next, I’d like to introduce another fighter for the dignity of the unborn Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex, a czar who has led his department and implementing so many pro life winds on both the domestic and the international fronts. I have worked closely with Secretary, as are on many issues over the last few years and know his heart for the pro life cause please help me. Welcome Secretary Alex Cesar to the booth. Thank you very much. Thank you. Uh, Brooke, that’s very kind and thank you all. It’s overwhelming toe. Get that greeting from you all. And thank you, Mr Vice President, for bringing us together for this important event today. It’s great to be with so many people who are so committed to protecting the fundamental rights that have made our country great. It’s great toe. Just look out in this audience and see so many friends. So many supporters have been with us throughout this journey over the last several years and fought with us to protect the dignity of human life at every step of the way. I especially want to thank the vice president for his unwavering commitment to the cause of life and religious liberty, which has helped it advanced them in unprecedented ways In this administration. It would take a rather lengthy speech toe highlight everything that HHS is accomplished in this realm over the past few years. So I just wanna highlight a few areas that I’m particularly proud of. Under President Trump, HHS has led the way on promoting a culture of life. As you heard earlier, we finalized a new title, 10 regulation to ensure that taxpayer dollars aren’t supporting abortion as a method of family planning. Requiring Title 10 services to be delivered at a separate location from abortions. We rescinded a guidance that had prohibited state Medicaid programs from taking steps to ensure federal funds were not going to support abortion providers. And we approved a waiver for Texas to ensure that abortion providers weren’t receiving Medicaid funds. These efforts require a partnership between the federal government and state and local leaders. So I want to thank especially all of the state and local pro life leaders that we have here today and who are watching this today. This administration values your efforts and recognizes that we couldn’t be where we are today without you. We’ve also been protecting conscience rights more aggressively than any previous administration in history. The HHS Office for Civil Rights, led by Roger Severino, established its first ever conscience and religious Freedom division tasked with making sure our nation’s conscience and religious freedom laws. Air never again treated like second class rights. Today, we’re pleased to be announcing to actions out of that office that demonstrate our commitment to the enforcement of these laws to ensuring they’re not merely words on paper as they have been for decades. First, we’re taking enforcement action against the state of California for imposing universal abortion coverage mandates on health insurance in the state. We have informed, yeah, way have informed California that this policy clearly violates federal conscience laws. But this state refuses to fix the issue and comply accordingly. We plan to withhold $200 million in federal Medicaid funds from the state in the first quarter of 2021 unless California men’s its policies, we will seek to withhold an additional $200 million every quarter until it complies. Second, the Department of Justice is filing a lawsuit on behalf on our behalf in a separate conscience violation issue, which Claire will discuss shortly. This commitment to protecting the dignity of human life and Americans conscience and religious freedom rights has also continued during during our response to Cove in 19, we’ve taken action to ensure that states and health care providers do not discriminate on the basis of age or disability in the allocation of life saving medical care. And we’ve helped resolve numerous religious discrimination complaints ensuring hospital patients have access to clergy during this pandemic. As many of you know, we also collaborated with the Department of Labor and Treasury to protect American employers, including organizations like the Little Sisters of the Poor that have religious or moral objections toe providing coverage for contraceptives in their health insurance plans this past summer by seven to to majority the Supreme Court upheld our statutory authority to issue those important exemptions to protect conscience. The success that we’ve had wouldn’t be possible without the tremendous support that we’ve had from the Department of Justice, and I want to thank Claire for being here to represent the good people at DOJ who’ve been tireless in their efforts to uphold the law and protect the conscience rights of every American. Finally, this administration’s efforts have not been confined to our borders. In late October, Secretary Pompeo and I co hosted the virtual signing ceremony of the Geneva Consensus Declaration, a historic document and commitment to life co sponsored by the United States, Brazil, Egypt, Hungary, Indonesia and Uganda. The declaration comes out of an international coalition that we’ve built under the Trump Administration to achieve better health for women. The preservation of human life support for the family is foundational to a healthy society and the protection of national sovereignty in global politics. As of today, the declaration has been signed by 35 countries representing more than 1.6 billion people, nearly 20% of the United Nations member states. This’ll historic achievement, which was the fruit of years of labor in the fields, was the result of these effort and commitment by two great leaders at HHS, Garrett Grigsby and Valerie Huber, who have pulled this international coalition together and I think forever changed the international profile of support for life. So thank you. This coalition is unfortunately necessary because of efforts by other wealthy countries to bully smaller countries on these issues, and we’ve been proud to help them fight back under President Trump. This declaration will live on as a commitment thio these country of these countries to those important goals. It is without contests. The most significant international commitment made in the history of the pro life movement and the participating countries remain bound toe working together to protect life and family to close. I just want to acknowledge all of the hard dedicated work the each of you here today has done to protect life and to protect the freedoms that air promised by our Constitution. One of the proudest parts of my time at HHS has been supporting our efforts to protect life at every stage, from the moment of conception through natural death. To help ensure that our department is in every sense of the word the Department of Life. I’m proud to have played a role, and you could be, too. I’m proud to have been the first secretary of HHS to have actually marched in the march for life as part of Orthodox Christians for life on the mall Way couldn’t have done any of this without your help and without the constant, unwavering support of President Trump and Vice President Pence over the past few years, I’ve never tired of stating this fact. There has never been a more pro life or pro religious freedom administration in American history. Thank you all for helping to make that happen, because it could not have happened without your unwavering support over the past several years. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you, Secretary, as our what A what? A gift to continue working with you. And I’m reminded when you were talking one of my favorite scriptures. I know most of you probably know it is the one that says, Let us run with endurance. The race that is set before us and you have had a lot of endurance, Secretary is are we have worked on a lot of different issues together on Certainly you have been such an incredible leader for this administration. So thank you with that. I would like to next introduced Bill Steiger, who is the chief of staff at the United States Agency for International Development, otherwise known as U. S. Aid. Bill has been a stalwart at US aid and implementing the president’s expanded Mexico City policy and also holding the United Nations and other international organizations accountable for their abortion advocacy. Please help me welcome Bill Steiger to the podium. Thank you. Thank you so much. Thank you, Mr Vice President. What an honor it is to share the stage with you. I’ve gotten a chance to work with this with you on this agenda, but also ah, broader part of our defense of human life and dignity around the world, which is our defense of religious and ethnic minorities, including in northern Iraq. And it’s an inspiration to have been able to carry forward your programs for Christians, disease and others that suffered the brutal repression and genocide of the so called Islamic state in that part of the world. So thank you for your leadership on that issue as well. This is good. Secretaries are always a pleasure to see you again. I worked for this man for a number of years previously, more than a decade ago, it HHS and we started on these issues. But I will tell you that we have made more progress in the last four years under this administration with the leadership of this president and this vice president on the international defensive life than at any time in American history, and the secretary deserves most of the credit for that, along with his team. So thank you for your leadership E. And it’s great to see friends and colleagues from around the country who have been tireless in your support of life here, a home and abroad, and we couldn’t have done it without all of you. So thank you also, for everything that you’ve done in supporting us at the US Agency for International Development and the State Department, as we’ve carried this agenda with our colleagues, from HHS to the United Nations and on a bilateral basis, and what I’m here to tell you is a little bit more about the success that we’ve had internationally on two fronts. The first is our bilateral programs, those programs that you fund that we deliver around the world on global health as you’ve heard. On his third day in office, the president signed a memorandum which reinstated the Mexico City policy which extended to our family planning programs that USA ID and then asked the secretary of state and the secretary of Health and Human services to take it further to extend those protections to all of our global health programs. And in May of 2017, we did just that. The protecting life in global health policy, as it’s called R P L G H, has meant that we are now protecting life in not just the small slice of about $300 million in voluntary family planning money, but in the $9 billion or more that we spend every year on other health programs around the world. This has never been done in by any administration. It’s the largest expansion of a pro life policy internationally that’s ever occurred. And it’s meant that we have prohibited now any of our global health assistance money from subsidizing abortion from promoting abortion. No for non governmental organization may take our money and promote or perform abortion as a method of family planning or, for that matter, take anyone else’s money and conduct those activities. That has meant, among other things, that the major organizations behind the international abortion industrial complex, the International Planned Parenthood Federation and Marie Stopes International, have been unable to receive any U. S federal funds since 2017. It’s interesting to note that just a couple of weeks ago you might have seen Marie Stopes International decided that it had to change its name because it finally has to reconcile the racist and you Genest background of its founder and is trying to hide its agenda now under justice initials. But we’ve stopped that organization and others from being able to take your money and promote a perform abortion overseas, which is a great legacy for this president, people have said. And I think I know you’ve heard some of the fearmongering that somehow maybe this policy was going to destroy our health programs that are helping women and Children and families around the world. And nothing could be further from the truth, the fax bear this out. The disruptions, if there were any, have been minimal. Only eight of more than 1300 organizations that were prime recipients of our global health assistance since 2017 have refused the terms of the policy. Most organizations recognized that the policy is the right thing to do, and they themselves, many of which are faith based organizations, have recognized that our policy fits with their values. It’s proof that we can have to policy objectives and implement them at the same time protecting life and human dignity and providing life saving and life changing assistance. Tow women, Children and their families all around the world, the second place where we’ve had successes in the multilateral arena at the United Nations and other organizations. We fought hard with our colleagues at HHS and at the State Department to eliminate language and international documents. Negotiated resolutions at the General Assembly of the United Nations of the World Health Assembly that is code for abortion terms like sexual and reproductive health or sexual and reproductive rights, things that had been ingrained in many of the routine resolutions of the U. N. For many years we’ve stood up and fought against that language. You might have seen that my boss, John Barsa Houthi, acting deputy administrator of U. S A. I D. In the last few months, has written to the secretary general of the U. N twice to complain about the obvious and craven cynical attempt by the United Nations to use the pandemic of 2019 as a justification for promoting abortion. rights around the world. It’s reprehensible that a small group of nations with a radical agenda supported by a few non governmental advocacy groups, continue to pursue what can, on Lee be called abortion imperialism and use the U. N as a way to bully is, the secretary said, sovereign governments into changing their laws that reflect their country’s values. They’re aided and embedded in this quest by the Communist Party of China, which is, we all know, has used coerced abortion and forced sterilization as a tool of terror and state control. For more than 40 years, we’ve said no, the U. N. Should not be in the abortion business. And the president was clear in his speech to the General Assembly two years ago when he was the first American president to stand up and defend life of the United Nations, that we will not let this continue, and we’re not alone. What the secretary has done with his team is amazing diplomatic work. We’ve come in the last four years, as I say longer, Ah, farther than we’ve come than in the 20 years that I’ve been doing this work in building an international coalition of nations the president, the vice president have inspired other leaders. Just look at Brazil and Hungary in Egypt, those who joined the Geneva Consensus Declaration they’re willing to find the courage to say what we know needs to be said internationally because our President, vice president have been willing to do so too. So, ladies, gentlemen, life is winning, even if the United Nations around the world. But our work is not yet done. As you know, we haven’t done everything that we need to dio. There are still international documents that are aggressively promoting abortion. There are still resolutions that will pass over our objections. That will do the same. We need you to help us keep the pressure up on the U. N. To join together and stand with the other members of the coalition to keep them firm in fighting for the right to life around the world. And we need you to help us preserve the gains that we’ve achieved domestically internationally in the years to come. Thanks so much. Thank you, Bill. Thank you for your great leadership. Next, I’d like to introduce Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General at the Department of Justice Claire Murray, three office. Clear Leads has responsibility at the Department of Justice for civil litigation and regulatory matters, and she will tell us about some of those matters of particular interest to this community. Claire, who will soon deliver her fifth child. Uh, if you will join me at the podium and let us, I’ll give you a big round of applause for many reasons. Thank you. Thank you so much. And thank you, Brooke, for that kind introduction. Thank you, Mr Vice President, For your leadership in for convening us. You sort of knew that we had to have at least one unborn baby at this thing gathering until I thought I could serve effort with. But I’m also here on behalf of Attorney General Bar to tell you a little bit about what the Department of Justice has done over the past few years to defend the civil on dcaa institutional rights of all Americans, including the millions of Americans for whom the sanctity of life is a core ethical and religious conviction. You heard a little bit from Secretary is our about our defensive mission. And the department has been extremely active in defending the administration’s pro life initiatives. whether that is defending the title 10 rule or standing, you know, with the little sisters of the poor at the Supreme Court or defending health restrictions on Mifeprex on are you 46? Um, that has been a big part of our docket and something that we have done very successfully. But today I would just sort of like to highlight two things that are going on the lower courts that you may or may not be aware of, one of which you were not aware of. Because as secretary is our suggested we have a hot off the press announcement. Um, this’ll morning. The Department of Justice is civil rights division, led by our assistant Attorney General, Eric Dr Band, um, sued to stop a hospital in Vermont from violating the rights of health care providers who follow their consciences and refused to assistant performing abortions. This’ll do is based on investigation conducted by Roger Ceferino, Um, and the HHS Office of Civil Rights. Um, HHS, as you know, under the leadership of Secretary is our has been a staunch defender of the vulnerable and marginalized, and in this case, their investigation uncovered that the University of Vermont Medical Center had forced a Catholic nurse to participate in an elective abortion, even though the doctor performing the abortion knew that the nurse had placed her name on the hospital’s list of conscientious objectors and even though other nurses without conscientious objections were available to assist instead. What’s more, our suit alleges that the hospital actually misled the nurse into believing that she was scheduled to assist in another you know, unobjectionable procedure. It was only when she arrived in the operating room that the physician performing the abortion turned to her and said, Please don’t hate me for this, um, finally our student ledges that the hospital has adopted discriminatory policies that authorized it to schedule conscientious objectors to assist with abortions even after they have submitted written objections, and that it repeatedly scheduled nurses whose names were on the objector list for abortion procedures. Discriminating against a conscientious objector for refusing to assist in an abortion violates federal laws that were enacted by a bipartisan Congress to protect the conscientious writes the conscience rights of those with moral or religious objections to abortion. Congress enacted those laws shortly after row, and it was because it foresaw the risk of row, leading to a naked public square where health care providers with moral or religious objections to abortion were driven from the medical profession. Congress recognize that America is a richer place when those with sincere religious and moral objections to abortion can participate fully and civic life. And it sought to protect the ability of pro life doctors, nurses and other health care workers to pursue their callings and to bring their talents to bear in serving their communities. Our suit seeks to advance that same purpose by seeking a court order to require the hospital to honor its obligations under the law. So that’s the only announcement I have today. But I would like to highlight one other ongoing action department has taken in this area that you that has gone a little bit more under the radar. Um Earlier this year, the department filed a brief in support of an Ohio law that prohibits abortion providers from carrying out abortions when they know that the abortion is being sought because of a Down Syndrome diagnosis. The department argued that Ohio’s law serves a number of important purposes first, avoiding the pernicious inference that our fellow citizens with down syndrome are any less worthy of dignity and respect than any of the rest of us. Second, warning against the slippery slope towards eugenic race or sex based abortions. And third, protecting women from potentially coercive abortion providers who may pressure them to obtain an abortion because of Down syndrome. Nothing in the Constitution or Supreme Court precedent are, brief argues requires the sixth Circuit to invalidate Ohio’s law. That case was argued a number of months ago. It is still pending, and we yearly await a ruling. Thanks in great part to the strong leadership of the president and the vice president. This administration has remained steadfast in its commitment to ensuring that the fundamental rights of pro life individuals and organizations are respected. I am so proud of the work the department has done and safeguarding the impartial administration of justice for all Americans. Thank you for everything that you have done to enable us to do what we were able to dio. Thank you, Claire. That was amazing. Thank you for all your incredible work in the team to before I moved to the next part of the program. I do want to say that take a point of personal privilege. Leading the domestic policy council has been one of the great honors of my life. But truly standing on the shoulders of our team have done such extraordinary work. And Jenny Lichter, who many of you know, is really the force behind the domestic policy Council. Jenny, thank you. Thank you for everything you’ve done. It’s been an honor to honor to work with you on these issues. Um, at this time, I want Thio say that it’s now my great pleasure to call on two leaders and allies we have relied on these past few years. And for whom we are so grateful. The president of the Susan B. Anthony List who needs no introduction Marjorie Dannenfelser and also the president Also not needing introduction of March for life action. Tom McCluskey, If I could ask you guys Thio, go ahead. Thank you. I think we have a little, uh, dance we’re gonna put on, right? Oh, no, no, not a dance. No, it’s It’s really a privilege to speak for this family and this family. We really know each other. We’ve been through a lot together, and this family includes you Vice president Pence. Um, so Tom and I have ah presentation to make, but I just wanted Thio. Just wanted to say a couple things to you, Mr. Vice President, Life is winning in America because you and this president kept your promises from the very beginning. Every single day you kept every promise. In fact, some say that you’ve kept more promises than you even made right. I think Mark Schwarz says, that’s a mathematical impossibility on. Yet I say it’s true because we’ve been there every single day with Paul Teller with his team with this great secretary. Um, and because of of that commitment and your follow through, we’re looking at a springtime for the pro life movement, a moment that I consider the third wave the part where we really win. And so the launchpad, of course, is what you have managed to do with this federal judiciary. But four years ago, just leading up to the march for life and right around the time of the inauguration, days after you invited some of us and right before the march Ah lot of us here. A lot of us here couldn’t get there. But some of us were there and and that’s about the time and other administrations that that we would get together and start to sort of handicap. Okay, these are the promises made. What percentage do you think we can actually get done? And that’s a really conversation that has had more than once. Now I’m not that old, but at least a couple of times, Um, now, we because of the because of who you are in this president, is we didn’t really necessarily have that conversation, but I’ll be perfectly honest. We did okay, what can possibly get done well again mawr than we even realized. Because with God’s grace and the timing of the Supreme Court, this last nomination and the third Supreme Court justice, the conversations that we’re having in this room right now are qualitatively different than any others that we’ve ever had in the pro life movement since the very beginning. We’re talking about a court that will possibly allow states to pass laws that reflect the will of the people of the states in which they live, and that means actual little boys and girls intended for this world. Lives will be saved very soon and And that is because of your promises and the thing and what you’ve done. And we just thank you. It is really poignant to come full circle now, After all those four years where we didn’t have to handicap, we didn’t even really know, um, how beautiful it would be. And to thank you from the bottom of our hearts from this family to you and this beautiful administration, Um, for the beginning that you have established and we’ll look forward to marching on further with you. And with that, I will hand this over to the inimitable and s table. Uh, Tom McCluskey at the march for life. Thank you, Mark. Did I turn it off? That was nice. Thank you, Marjorie. And one of these days, I’ll learn never to follow Marjorie when she’s speaking. It’s kind of like when Jimi Hendrix opened up for the monkeys. Um, nobody wants to listen to the monkey, no matter how maney there are after hearing Jimi Hendrix, um, being in the pro life movement, it wouldn’t be appropriate if I didn’t have a complaint to make um, in the list of accomplishments that you handed out. And we do have it in this letter for you is you left off the biggest one? Um, policy means nothing if you don’t have the personnel behind it if you don’t have the personnel pushing for and implementing it. Uh, from from Roger Ceferino to Paul Teller to mark short to Jenny Lichter Thio So many that I don’t want to name them all because they might have a hard time finding jobs afterwards. If I dio the biggest, the biggest sign of a leader is the people he surrounds himself with and the power he gives them to get things done. And that’s how President Trump has proven to be a leader. Because in the summer of 2016, he picked one of us, as Marjorie said, one of the family to be his vice president. And we cannot thank the two of you enough for all you have done for life. This is truly your legacy going forward. That is now our job to carry on along. I’m sure alongside with you still, however, we have a letter here from so far about 70 organizations from around the country, both on the federal and state level, and we’re accepting name still, and we’d like to give you a more polished copy when that is done. Just thinking that you and President Trump for all you have done for life all you continue to do for life and to just embrace you in this time of co vid as one of our own and just thank you so much. What do you think, people? Okay, well, what a gift that is, Aziz, We come to close out today, I’ll pass it back to the vice president for his closing thoughts. But But I’m reminded of the beginning of this great country. When ah, businessman, a teacher and a couple of students also known as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison John Adams got together and decided to declare, um, what’s most thought was impossible. And that was a new country and freedom in a country that is guided by self governance and by our God. And, uh, ordinary people can do extraordinary things. And I’m not sure that that is more true or Aptiva description than this group here today. So with that, I thank you all and I turn it over to our extraordinary vice President to close this out Thank you. Ah, what a special afternoon. Let me say thank you. To Marjorie into Tom. Thank you for this. This generous letter. I’ll be walking it over to the Oval Office right after we finish up. I also wanna I want to express appreciation for all the incredible speakers that you’ve heard from here. Tom, I’m probably most moved by your well, your last comment that this is really about This is really about a president who build a team of men and women who were committed to see his agenda through. At the heart of that agenda was the cause of life. And, uh, you heard from some of our great leaders here, and, uh, join me in thanking the Secretary and Bill and this extraordinary prosecutor E. Thank you, Claire. Thank you for your great work. And all of you have made time for this. Thank you for giving us the opportunity simply to pay a debt of gratitude to each and every one of you. But I want to assure you, while we have made great progress in the cause of life that the fight goes on and I promise you on behalf of the President first family on behalf of my family. We’re going to stand with you every single day until the sanctity of life is restored to the center of American law. Thank you very much. God bless you. Let’s keep working for life. Tha wait. Ladies and gentlemen, please remain seated until the departure of the official partner.