With anti-abortion push, Trump woos evangelicals again

WASHINGTON >> With a fierce denunciation of late-term abortions, President Donald Trump is making a move to re-energize evangelical voters whose support will be vital in heading off any possible 2020 primary challenge.

Trump, at arguably the weakest point of his presidency, seized on abortion during his State of the Union address Tuesday to re-engage on a divisive cultural issue, using both religious rhetoric aimed at conservative Christians and scathing attacks on Democratic lawmakers who support abortion rights — in particular, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam.

Trump went after Northam — by title, not by name — in his speech and incorrectly claimed that the governor “stated he would execute a baby after birth.” As the speech was being drafted, Trump had wanted to use even harsher language about Northam, and call him out by name, but he was reined in by aides, according to three White House officials and Republicans close to the White House who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss private conversations.

The message from Trump, an unlikely champion of the anti-abortion cause, was aimed squarely at evangelicals who play an outsized role in Republican politics. Battered by the fallout from a damaging government shutdown, Trump has seen his poll numbers tumble and support within his own party slip, forcing his campaign to work to ward off any primary foes, including shoring up support among religious conservatives who could be wooed by an intraparty challenger.

Ralph Reed, a prominent GOP evangelical strategist, said the White House worked closely with evangelicals during the fight over Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination, but contact dropped off during the midterm elections and the government shutdown.

“Now we see it picking up again,” Reed said, calling Trump’s State of the Union comments “important and deeply appreciated.”

Religious voters, including Roman Catholics in the industrial Midwest, will be a key constituency in a Trump re-election, Reed said.

“He’s got a proven, demonstrable record of performing with (evangelicals),” Reed said. “As with the Bush re-elect in 2004, it could become a building block to a strong re-election.”

In the days before the speech, White House aides telegraphed that an antiabortion passage in the address using faith-based language would become a reelection theme. The issue is expected to be in the spotlight again Thursday as the president attends the National Prayer Breakfast.

“To defend the dignity of every person, I am asking Congress to pass legislation to prohibit the lateterm abortion of children who can feel pain in the mother’s womb,” Trump said Tuesday. “Let us work together to build a culture that cherishes innocent life. And let us reaffirm a fundamental truth: All children — born and unborn — are made in the holy image of God.”

The White House did not immediately reveal if it had a firm plan for federal legislation or supported an existing congressional measure, raising questions about whether Trump’s call was concrete or simply early election season rhetoric. A bill passed the House last year but died in the Senate, and prospects of similar legislation being passed by a Democratic-controlled House are remote.

Still, Trump’s attention to evangelicals during one of the low points in his presidency makes sense, said Jennifer Lawless, a political science professor at the University of Virginia.

“If anyone is counting on challenging him in that primary, to the extent that Trump can count on evangelicals, that makes the path that much harder,” she said.