Former Senator John Ashcroft has endured days of unrelenting attacks from pro-abortion left-wing members of the Senate Judiciary Committee who are seeking to derail his nomination as U.S. Attorney General. The tactics of the Democrats have been vicious and intimidating. Ashcroft has handled himself with dignity in the face of lies, distortions and criticisms of his public record. On Wednesday, however, under extreme pressure, Ashcroft said that he would not attempt to overturn Roe v.Wade and that he considered it the “settled law of the land.” Further, he said that he does not believe that George W. Bush intends to challenge Roe.

Many pro-lifers were shocked by these statements. They have been expecting the Bush administration to fight for the right to life. They were hoping that a pro-life Attorney General would find ways to advance the cause of life through exercising his powerful office.

Many respected legal authorities think that, like the Dred Scott decision and others, Roe v. Wade is a settled case, but it is not settled law. In fact, no law has been passed that makes abortion legal in this country. Like Dred Scott, Roe has the potential to be overturned, given the right circumstances and the right make-up of the Supreme Court. Political rhetoric notwithstanding, we subscribe to that view. In his heart, we believe Senator Ashcroft thinks so, too.

But we must remember that Cabinet officers, including the U.S. Attorney General, serve at the will of the President of the United States. In this instance, George W. Bush has never said that he would, or even wanted to, overturn Roe. To the contrary, he has said he thinks the American people aren’t ready for that yet. He certainly made it clear that respect for the sanctity of human life is not a requirement for his nominees to the federal bench and the Supreme Court.

Ashcroft’s declarations before the Judiciary Committee have prompted Gary Bauer to point out that the liberals “have videotape and transcripts of Ashcroft’s answer, which they will use to block any effort by the Bush Justice Department to protect unborn children.” (Campaign for Working Families Fax, 1/18/01) It is critical that pro-life supporters of George W. Bush remind him that Roe v. Wade is not set in stone, that it can and should be overturned, and that the effort to do so is something to be expected of a President who describes himself as “pro-life.”

28 Years Since Roe v. Wade 
On Saturday, pro-life Americans will commemorate the 28th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision that changed America for the worse. It also changed the lives of millions of people like you and me, who awoke to the news that abortion was legal in our country and realized that something had gone terribly wrong. Even though we didn’t know or even imagine what that decision would mean, we had an innate fear for our nation and for the future of our children in a society that presumed to hold life so cheap.

For 28 years, we have educated and lobbied and protested and counseled and prayed that America would see an end to the legally sanctioned killing of babies who are waiting to be born. And we will never give up.

Today, advances in medical science and technology have brought the core of the right to life cause front and center by forcing us to confront the reality that the humanity of the human embryo must be firmly established in the law if we are to ever restore respect for life. It’s embryology 101. It’s simple high school freshman biology. When the sperm and egg unite a new, unique individual human being comes into existence. That human being must not be killed to benefit somebody else, as in human stem cell experiments.

The embryonic human being must be recognized as a human subject, protected under the Nuremberg Code of Medical Ethics — or utilitarianism at all of life’s stages will prevail.

28 years after Roe v. Wade we teeter on the brink of the abyss. It’s not too late to pull back.