The Republican National Committee released its 2024 platform on Monday, softening its stance on abortion and dropping its opposition to same-sex marriage, in a move GOP officials say is in line with political realities and the beliefs of presumptive presidential nominee Donald Trump.
But many social conservatives have criticized the new platform, with Southern Baptist Convention President Clint Pressley saying he was “disappointed by what’s happened in the Republican Party” and Live Action pro-life activist Lila Rose calling it “a major downgrade from what we’ve had in 40 years.”
I am disheartened by what has happened in the Republican Party. The Republican platform may change, but the Word of God will not. Southern Baptists “assert the sanctity of all human life from conception to natural death” and will do the same for our elected officials.
— Clint Presley (@pastorclint) July 9, 2024
The new Republican platform on life is a significant step down from the platforms of the past 40 years.
This is extremely unfortunate and harmful to the unborn in America. Our Constitution guarantees everyone the right to equal protection. States do not get to decide which states to grant protection to…
— Lila Rose (@LilaGraceRose) July 8, 2024
Since the Reagan revolution of the 1970s and 1980s, every Republican platform has supported federal protections for the unborn, often with strong pro-life language. For example, the 1976 platform stated: He supported “the efforts of those seeking to enact a constitutional amendment to restore protection for the right to life of the unborn child.”The 1984 platform stated that “the unborn child has a fundamental individual right to life which may not be infringed.” The Republican Party’s most recent platform, the 2016 platform, included similar language.
The Republican National Committee’s platform committee on Monday passed a platform that mentions abortion but, for the first time since the 1972 platform, does not support a federal solution to abortion. The new platform says abortion is a state issue.
In addition, the 2024 platform will The first platform since 1972 It does not mention “unborn fetuses.” The new platform also supports in vitro fertilization, a procedure opposed by many pro-lifers. IVF was not discussed in the previous platform.
The 2024 Republican Party platform will be the first platform written since the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
“We proudly support family and life,” the 2024 Republican Party platform states. “We The 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution “We support the establishment of the law that no person shall be deprived of life or liberty without due process, and therefore states are free to enact laws to protect those rights. Fifty-one years later, thanks to us, that power has been placed in the hands of the states and the people. While we oppose late-term abortion, we support mothers and policies that promote prenatal care, access to birth control and IVF (infertility treatments).”
The 2016 platform had more than 700 words on the issue of abortion. The 2024 platform has fewer than 100 words on abortion.
The 2016 platform states:We assert the sanctity of human life and recognize that the unborn have a fundamental right to life that must not be infringed. We support the Human Life Amendment to the Constitution and legislation making clear that the protections of the 14th Amendment apply to unborn children.But the language has disappeared.
The 2024 platform also removes language opposing same-sex marriage. The issue first appeared in the Republican platform in 1992, where it stated, “We oppose any legislation or law that would legally recognize same-sex marriage.” Every Republican platform since 1992 has opposed same-sex marriage. The 2016 platform opposed the Supreme Court decision that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide.
The 2024 platform makes no mention of same-sex marriage. (Trump spokesman Said Trump supported same-sex marriage.
While the 2024 platform disappointed social conservatives on the issue of abortion, it does address another major social issue: gender.
“We will remove men from women’s sports, ban taxpayer funding for sex reassignment surgery, block taxpayer funded schools from promoting gender transitions, and reverse Biden’s radical rewrite of Title IX education regulations, restoring protections for women and girls,” the new platform states.
The new platform also pledges to protect religious freedom.
“We are defenders of the First Amendment right to religious freedom,” the 2024 platform states. “It protects the right to religious freedom. Not only do we worship according to the dictates of our conscience, Act according to these beliefs not only in your places of worship but also in your daily lives. Our ranks include men and women of all faiths and traditions, and we respect the right of all Americans to follow their deeply held beliefs. To protect religious freedom, Republicans will support a new federal task force to combat anti-Christian bigotry that will investigate all forms of unlawful discrimination, harassment and persecution against Christians in America.”
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Michael Faust He has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years, and his work has appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, Christian Post, Leaf Chronicle, Toronto Star and Knoxville News Sentinel.
