Trump’s Pro-Life Message: Children Have Dignity ‘From Conception’

President Trump broke his promise to pro-lifers recently by signing an omnibus bill that fully funded the abortion conglomerate Planned Parenthood. While pro-lifers won’t forget the betrayal, they aren’t overlooking the fact that the president makes a point of bestowing dignity on the unborn with some of his actions and his rhetoric.

Most recently, in a Presidential Proclamation declaring April as “Child Abuse Prevention Month,” President Trump openly stated that children have dignity from “the moment of conception.”

“We must always remember that all children are blessings from our Creator,” Trump declares in the proclamation. “They are endowed from conception with value, purpose, and human dignity. They are a source of unmatched joy, and they represent our Nation’s future.”

The president also calls for an end to child abuse and a mistreatment of children.

Pro-life leaders fully endorse the statement, not only as it pertains to a child’s dignity, but also as it pertains to abortion being child abuse. In fact, the abortion culture has been shown to increase child abuse culture, which makes perfect sense. So long as children remain “choices” that can be discarded in a petri dish, then it comes as no surprise that abuse of children will only increase.

“Abortion is the ultimate child abuse, and Pres. Trump appears to agree with that in his statement about children from conception having value, purpose, and human dignity,” said Operation Rescue president Troy Newman. “The brutal dismemberment of babies during abortions, along with other barbaric methods of killing used to abort babies, are completely inconsistent with Trump’s child abuse prevention proclamation. All children deserve to be protected from abortion. In fact, it is a moral imperative.”

Newman praised many of the president’s pro-life accomplishments while stressing that he must keep his promise to defund Planned Parenthood.

“But the one promise he has yet to keep is the defunding of Planned Parenthood in the U.S., the nation’s largest abortion business, which receives over a half-billion in tax dollars each year,” said Newman. “This is mainly because of Democrats and a few pro-abortion Republicans in the Senate who are preventing a defunding measure from getting through.”

“Child abuse is a horrendous problem in our nation, which has been worsened by the callous practice of abortion,” Newman continued. “When one can kill a baby for any reason prior to birth, it devalues the lives of all children. The least we must do is stop tax payers from funding Planned Parenthood, the largest child abuser there is. That will go a long way toward restoring a respect for all human life – born and unborn – in our nation.”

The Trump Administration has made strides to promote a child’s dignity. In October of last year, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services defined life as beginning at conception in their new strategic plan. “HHS accomplishes its mission through programs and initiatives that cover a wide spectrum of activities, serving and protecting Americans at every stage of life, beginning at conception,” the plan states.

Below is the full proclamation:

Every child is a precious and unique gift who deserves the security of a loving and nurturing home. When supported by encouraging families and safe, strong communities, all children have the chance to reach their full potential and access the unlimited opportunities that our great Nation has to offer. To realize this truth, we must dedicate ourselves to the noble cause of protecting and caring for our children.

National Child Abuse Prevention Month is an annual reminder that not every home is a haven of acceptance and unconditional love. Too often, childhood is marred with pain, violence, neglect, and abuse, which can have lifelong psychological, emotional, and physical consequences. At no fault of their own, some children are subjected to the most depraved forms of child abuse and neglect, without reprieve and, sometimes, without any knowledge that they are being maltreated. The statistics are shocking: a quarter of all children experience some form of child abuse or neglect in their lifetime. The financial consequences of this depravity are dire. By some estimates, the lifetime cost of child abuse and neglect is $124 billion per year. The human cost — measured in lost development, potential, and flourishing — is incalculable.

To improve the statistics and the well-being of our Nation’s children, we must become more aware of the signs and symptoms of child abuse and take action as necessary. We should not allow pride or discomfort to prevent us from helping a child who is truly suffering. We must be a Nation committed to taking action in the face of adversity and uncertainty, particularly when done to enhance the safety or security of children.

The Child Welfare Information Gateway (CWIG) notes that children who show sudden changes in behavior, who have not received treatment for physical or medical problems brought to their parents’ attention, or who are always watchful, as if preparing for something bad to happen, may be exhibiting signs of child abuse. Though the presence of one or some of these signs alone does not necessarily mean that a child has been the victim of child abuse or neglect, it is vital that we understand and remain vigilant for these indicators. As Americans we must do all that we can.

This month, we honor the professionals, volunteers, and organizations who work tirelessly to protect at-risk children and care for those who have experienced abuse or neglect. This difficult work is critical to ensuring the safety and protection of our children, to strengthening our communities, and to stopping cycles of violence harm. There are no substitutes for caring parents and guardians. But we recognize that friends, neighbors, educators, and places of worship have important roles to play in fostering the well-being of children. We are especially grateful to foster and adoptive parents, who open their lives to children in need of loving and caring homes. We can and should continue to work together to help provide healthy, happy, and safe environments for all children.

We must always remember that all children are blessings from our Creator. They are endowed from conception with value, purpose, and human dignity. They are a source of unmatched joy, and they represent our Nation’s future. It is thus our civic and moral responsibility to help every child experience a childhood free from abuse and mistreatment, guiding them toward a future full of hope and promise. I encourage all Americans to nurture the children in their lives and to extend a hand to those in need of love, protection, or even just attention. Only together can we put an end to the tragedy of child abuse and neglect. I am confident that our combined efforts in combatting these evils will help create a world that is more tender, compassionate, and inviting to our children for centuries to come.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim April 2018 as National Child Abuse Prevention Month. I call upon all Americans to invest in the lives of our Nation’s children, to be aware of their safety and well-being, and to support efforts that promote their psychological, physical, and emotional development.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-ninth day of March, in the year of our Lord two thousand eighteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-second.

DONALD J. TRUMP