Newly approved Attorney General wants to stop mail shipments of abortion inducing pills

 

Blanche signals potential restrictions on mifepristone by mail from Trump administration

written by Kate Scanlon

Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche attends a news conference at the Justice Department in Washington Aug. 5, 2026. Blanche signaled on a July private call with a predominantly Protestant Christian ministry that the Trump administration would be "putting practices and policies in place" to stop shipment of mifepristone by mail. (OSV News photo/Jonathan Ernst, Reuters)

WASHINGTON (OSV News) — Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche signaled on a call with a predominantly Protestant Christian ministry that the Trump administration would be “putting practices and policies in place” to stop shipment of mifepristone by mail. 

During a private call-in late July, hosted by the White House Faith Office, Blanche told the group Intercessors for America that the Justice Department was “working hand in hand” with federal agencies and the White House “so that the Dobbs decision becomes permanent in every single state.” He referred to Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision finding abortion a constitutionally protected right and returned the matter of restricting or regulating abortion to the legislative branch. A recording of the Blanche call, which appears to have since been removed from YouTube, was first reported by Politico.

“If states have said, ‘We are going to protect the unborn and we’re going to protect every life from the moment of conception,’ we’re putting practices and policies in place so that other states and other organizations can’t attack that,” Blanche said on the call. “They can’t do things like they’re doing with mailing in mail-order drugs.”

A spokesperson for the Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment from OSV News. 

Justice Department says Blanche remarks need to be understood in context

But a Justice Department statement provided to The Hill claimed Blanche’s “comments have been mischaracterized and need to be understood in their full context, which was with respect to mail order abortion drugs, not a broader expansion of federal control over states.”

The Trump administration asked multiple judges to pause state lawsuits seeking to roll back Biden administration-era eased restrictions on mifepristone, a drug commonly used for first trimester abortion, but which is also used in some miscarriage care protocols. The Trump administration has thus far left that regulation in effect while seeking to block challenges to it pending a promised FDA safety review, prompting frustration from pro-life advocates.

The state lawsuits — notably from Louisiana, Missouri and Florida — seek to end the FDA policy implemented during the Biden administration permitting mifepristone to be distributed by mail. The states have argued the policy undermines their own state laws, among other objections.

In April, a federal judge agreed to the Justice Department’s request and paused Louisiana’s lawsuit but indicated the state could potentially continue its challenge after the FDA concludes its safety review. However, the status and timeline of the FDA review are unclear. 

Mifepristone policy raised in confirmation process

Blanche’s recent comments came as he sought Senate confirmation as attorney general.

His nomination was advanced by the Senate Judiciary Committee Aug. 4. Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, said in a statement acknowledging the committee vote that during Blanche’s hearing, “a majority of GOP senators on the Judiciary Committee pressed him on abortion drugs, uncomfortable with the continuation of Biden’s illegal mail-order abortion drug regime and the Department of Justice’s opposition in court to pro-life states challenging the scheme.” 

Blanche, she said, “was right when he said, ‘We very much believe the Biden rules were wrong.’ We thank pro-life senators for questioning Acting AG Blanche and urge the Acting AG to swiftly settle the case with Louisiana and abortion drug coercion survivor Rosalie Markezich to immediately get abortion drugs out of the mail while the FDA’s safety study continues.”

Blanche’s path to confirmation by the full Senate is narrow. Of three senators seen as key swing votes, Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, who is seeking reelection in a swing state in November, said Aug. 4 she will not support Blanche’s nomination. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, on Aug. 7 said she would not support Blanche, while Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., said the same day he would. 

Senate GOP leadership can afford to lose just two Republicans if Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., remains absent from the upper chamber and if all 47 Senate Democrats vote “no.”

US bishops concerned over abortion pills by mail

The U.S. Catholic bishops will launch a nationwide call to prayer and action on Aug. 18, in what they called an effort to mobilize Catholics to address the rising abortion rate and the increased availability of mifepristone for abortion via mail.

According to an estimate from Guttmacher Institute, a research firm that supports legal abortion access, 1.12 million abortions took place in the U.S. in 2025, marking a 21% increase from 2020, “the last year of comprehensive national estimates” before Dobbs. It found 2025 figures were largely unchanged from the prior year but suggested they might be low due to the ability to acquire abortion pills by means other than U.S. abortion clinic providers.

TODAY is the MARCH FOR LIFE in Washington, DC; Pope Leo XIV sends his encouragement and support

 

Annual March for Life in Washington D.C. in 2022  (AFP or licensors)

Pope

• protecting life
• abortion
• Pope Leo XIV
• message
• United States
• catholic church

Pope to US March for Life: Healthy societies protect human life

Pope Leo XIV sends a message to participants in the 2026 March for Life in Washington, D.C., encouraging young people “to continue striving to ensure that life is respected in all of its stages.”

By Kielce Gussie

Extending a warm greeting to the thousands set to participate in the 2026 March for Life in Washington, D.C., in the United States, Pope Leo XIV assured them all of his spiritual closeness in a message.

He added his heartfelt appreciation for this “eloquent public witness to affirm that ‘the protection of the right to life constitutes the indispensable foundation of every other human right’.”

Referring to his address to members of the Diplomatic Corps Accredited to the Holy See early this month, the Pope outlined what a healthy and truly progressive society looks like— “it safeguards the sanctity of human life and works actively to promote it.”

With this in mind, he encouraged young people in particular to continue working to ensure that life is respected and protected in all its stages “through appropriate efforts at every level of society, including dialogue with civil and political leaders.”

Pope Leo prayed that Jesus will accompany all those who peacefully march on behalf of the unborn. “By advocating for them”, he said, “please know that you are fulfilling the Lord’s command to serve him in the least of our brothers and sisters.”

Closing his message, the Pope entrusted all the participants, and all who support them through prayer and sacrifice, to Mary Immaculate—the Patroness of the United States of America.

Read also

20/01/2023

Pope Francis blesses participants in March for Life

52 years of the March

The first March for Life took place in January 1974—solemnly marking the one-year anniversary of the United States’ Supreme Court decision to legalize abortion. Its goal: lobby Congressional leadership to find a legislative solution to the ruling Roe v. Wade.

50 years later, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade with the historic Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case. This gave states more freedom to enact pro-life laws.

March for Life participants at the United States Capitol in 2023

With this, the focus of the March for Life has shifted. “The goal of the national March for Life is to not only change laws at the state and federal level, but to change the culture to ultimately make abortion unthinkable,” according to the March’s official website.

Abortions down slightly after Roe v Wade overturned

 

CDC: Abortions declined slightly following reversal of Roe v. Wade

By Kate Quiñones for CNA

Pro-life activist Matthew Engelthaler places signs in front of Camelback Family Planning, an abortion clinic in Phoenix, on April 18, 2024. / Credit: FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images

CNA Staff, Dec 5, 2024

CDC: Abortions declined slightly following reversal of Roe v. Wade

Abortions decreased by 2% from 2021 to 2022 — the year Roe v. Wade was overturned — according to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There were a recorded 622,000 abortions in 2021 from 46 reporting states and Washington, D.C., dropping to 609,000 in 2022, according to the report.

The CDC compiles data that is voluntarily reported by states’ central health agencies. The 2022 report includes 46 states as well as Washington, D.C., and New York City. California, Maryland, New Hampshire, and New Jersey did not provide data for the 2022 report.

According to the report, the abortion rate — the number of abortions per 1,000 women in a population — declined by 3%. The abortion ratio — the relative number of pregnancies that end in abortion compared with live birth — also declined slightly, by 2%.

The report found that almost 4 out of 5 abortions were performed at or before nine weeks’ gestation, while about 6% of abortions were between 14 and 20 weeks’ gestation. About 92% of abortions happened at or before 13 weeks of gestation.

The CDC found that more than 70% of abortions were chemical abortions. The high percentage of chemical abortions is similar to the CDC’s report from 2021, though chemical abortions have increased markedly in past decades. Missouri had a low rate of abortions, at 0.1 abortions per 1,000 women aged 15–44, while New Mexico had 28.8 abortions per 1,000 women.

In 2022, women in their 20s accounted for more than half of abortions, according to reporting areas. Black women accounted for the highest percentage of abortions according to reported ethnicity data, at almost 40%, while white women accounted for the second-highest percentage, at almost 32%. Nearly 90% of women who had abortions were unmarried.

Pro-life hero remembered

Monsignor Philip Reilly (1934–2024), a major figure in shaping the modern pro-life movement, died on Nov. 30 at the age of 90. Reilly was one of the first organizers of the annual March for Life in Washington, D.C.

Testimonials in the wake of his death hailed Reilly as an “unsung hero,” a “spiritual father,” and a pro-life mentor. He mentored the founders of 40 Days for Life and the Pro-life Action League as well as the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal and the Sisters of Life.

Reilly was initially involved in political advocacy against abortion — even blocking entrances to abortion clinics — but ultimately took another approach, founding in 1989 the Helpers of God’s Precious Infants. Based in New York, the worldwide apostolate organizes prayer vigils outside of abortion clinics, pledging peaceful prayer for the salvation of souls. The vigils usually begin with an early morning Mass followed by a procession from the church to the local abortion clinic.

Reilly’s funeral Mass will be held on Monday, Dec. 9, at 11 a.m., and he will be buried at St. John Cemetery in Queens, New York. A more detailed account of his life and influence can be found in the book “Pro-Life Champion: The Untold Story of Monsignor Philip J. Reilly and His Helpers of God’s Precious Infants” by Frederick W. Marks.

For an archival EWTN interview with Reilly, see here.

Idaho’s abortion trafficking law partially revived

On Dec. 2, a federal appeals court ruled in favor of Idaho’s law against trafficking minors out of state to obtain abortions. The abortion trafficking law makes it illegal to harbor or transport a minor to get an out-of-state abortion without parental consent. The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals partially approved the law but blocked a part of the law that prevented “recruiting” minors.

Two abortion rights groups challenged the law shortly after it passed in 2023, saying it violated the right to free speech and could prevent them from counseling minors seeking abortion. Circuit Judge M. Margaret McKeown ruled that “harboring” and “transporting” weren’t considered speech, and the law was partially approved.

A part of the law banning “recruiting” of minors to get out-of-state abortions was ruled as a violation of free speech. Abortions in Idaho are allowed only when the mother’s life is at risk, her physical health is substantially threatened, or if the pregnancy was from rape or incest. Abortion trafficking is punishable by two to five years in prison.

Arizona’s abortion law paused as lawsuit ensues

Arizona is temporarily pausing its 15-week abortion restriction pending an ongoing lawsuit that followed Arizona’s ballot measure that enshrined a right to abortion in the state constitution.

Arizona abortion providers filed the lawsuit on Tuesday in Maricopa County Superior Court. The abortion providers argued that the 15-week abortion law is unconstitutional. Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes agreed that the state will not enforce the law as the lawsuit plays out, meaning that abortion providers will be able to perform abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy.

Arizona’s ballot measure provided constitutionally for a “fundamental right to abortion.” The measure says the state cannot restrict abortion until the point of “viability” at approximately 24 weeks of pregnancy, unless it has a compelling reason and does so in the least restrictive way possible

Prayer Vigil for Life set for January 24-25

 

U.S. bishops announce Prayer Vigil

for Life to take place Jan. 23-24

By

OSV News

WASHINGTON (OSV News) — The annual Prayer Vigil for Life will take place Jan. 23-24, 2025, the U.S. bishops’ conference announced Nov. 22.

The event is hosted each January by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Pro-Life Secretariat, the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington and The Catholic University of America’s Office of Campus Ministry. It takes place on the eve of the March for Life, an annual protest of the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, which was overturned in 2022.

The 52nd National March for Life will take place Jan. 24, 2025.

“I enthusiastically invite Catholics from all around the country to join me in-person or virtually, in praying for an end to abortion and building up a culture of life,” said Bishop Daniel E. Thomas of Toledo, Ohio, chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on Pro-Life Activities, in the USCCB’s statement announcing the dates.

Since the high court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision in 2022 overturned nearly a half-century of its own precedent that held abortion to be a constitutional right, individual states have moved to either restrict abortion or expand access to it.

“Together, we must pray to change hearts and build a culture of life as we advocate for the most vulnerable,” Bishop Thomas said. “I look forward to opening our Vigil with Holy Mass together with many other bishops, hundreds of priests, consecrated religious, seminarians, and many thousands of pilgrims.”

At the vigil, the Jan 23 opening mass will take place in the basilica’s Great Upper Church from 5-7 p.m., with Bishop Thomas as the principal celebrant and homilist. A Eucharistic procession and the National Holy Hour for Life will follow the Mass. The vigil’s closing Mass will be celebrated by Bishop Robert J. Brennan of Brooklyn.

The event will be broadcast on Catholic networks and livestreamed on the basilica’s website at www.nationalshrine.org/mass. More information about the schedule can be found on the USCCB’s website, www.usccb.org, and more information about on-site attendance at the basilica is at its website.

Another Pro-Life setback thanks to activist judges

 

Judge strikes down Wyoming abortion laws,

including abortion pill ban

By

Kate Scanlon

The dome of the Wyoming Capitol in Cheyenne is pictured May 6, 2021. A Wyoming judge ruled Nov. 18 that two state laws restricting abortion -- including one banning chemical or medication abortions -- violated the state's constitution and could not be enforced. (OSV News photo/Nathan Layne, Reuters)

(OSV News) — A Wyoming judge ruled Nov. 18 that two state laws restricting abortion — including one banning chemical or medication abortions — violated the state’s constitution and could not be enforced.

Judge Melissa Owens of Teton County District Court wrote in her ruling that the laws, one restricting most abortions in the state and another specifically prohibiting the use of an abortion-inducing drug, “impede the fundamental right to make health care decisions for an entire class of people, pregnant women.”

“The Court concludes that the Abortion Statutes suspend a woman’s right to make her own health care decisions during the entire term of a pregnancy and are not reasonable or necessary to protect the health and general welfare of the people,” Owens wrote.

Wyoming enacted a near-total abortion ban in March 2023, as well as a preexisting ban that took effect after the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs ruling in 2022, which overturned its previous abortion precedent in Roe v. Wade.

This ruling marks the third time Owens has blocked the state’s abortion laws. It responded to a lawsuit against the state brought by Wellspring Health Access in Casper, the state’s only abortion clinic, as well as an organization that helps women access abortions, two OB-GYNs who provide abortions; and two women who say the laws have harmed them.

The ruling said the laws ran afoul of a 2012 amendment the state adopted in its constitution in protest of then-President Barack Obama’s signature health law, the Affordable Care Act. The amendment states that adults have a right to make their own health care decisions. Owens’ ruling found that while lawmakers did not define health care in that amendment, she could not find evidence that abortion would not be included in its plain meaning.

Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon, a Republican, called the ruling “frustrating” in a statement to The Cheyenne Post, but argued “this is just one of the steps in the judicial process,” and indicated there would be an appeal.

“I remain committed to defending the constitutionality of this law and the sanctity of life,” he said.

The Wyoming Democratic Party applauded the ruling in a statement to the same newspaper, arguing, “women in Wyoming have reclaimed their most basic human right — the right to control their own bodies.”

“Judge Owens’ decision affirms what we’ve been saying all along: abortion is healthcare, and women, just like men, are constitutionally guaranteed the right to make their own healthcare decisions,” the statement said.

The Catholic Church teaches that all human life is sacred from conception to natural death, and therefore opposes direct abortion. After the Dobbs decision, church officials in the United States have reiterated the church’s concern for both mother and child. They have called to strengthen available support for those living in poverty or other causes that can push women toward having an abortion.

Republicans still claim to be Pro-Life despite yanking the right to life plank from the party platform

 

Republicans remove ‘right to life’ plank from party platform

Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, praised the platform, saying it demonstrates that the Republican Party “remains strongly pro-life at the national level.” | Credit: Screenshot/EWTN News in Dept

By Peter Pinedo

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jul 8, 2024 / 16:50 pm

The 2024 Republican National Convention’s platform committee voted on Monday to adopt new language regarding abortion, removing a “right to life” plank and a call for a national law protecting unborn life from the party platform.

The platform is an aspirational document that is drafted and approved by party delegates during election years. It is meant to outline the party’s policy goals for the coming years.

While previous versions of the document said that unborn children have a “fundamental right to life which cannot be infringed” and called for a constitutional amendment to guarantee that right, this year’s platform uses much more moderate language and emphasizes the role of states in protecting life.

It reads: “We proudly stand for families and life. We believe that the 14th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States guarantees that no person can be denied life or liberty without due process, and that the states are, therefore, free to pass laws protecting those rights.”

The platform goes on to laud the overturn of Roe v. Wade and then express support for prenatal care, birth control, and in vitro fertilization (IVF).

“After 51 years, because of us, that power has been given to the states and to a vote of the people. We will oppose late-term abortion, while supporting mothers and policies that advance prenatal care, access to birth control, and IVF,” the new document reads.  

The draft, which according to the Washington Post was approved in an 84-18 vote, was written by former President Donald Trump’s campaign and adopted at his urging. 

The Trump campaign celebrated the platform’s passage in a Monday statement in which they said it “articulates his [Trump’s] vision to Make America Great Again in a way that is concise and digestible for every voter.”

Since April, the presumptive 2024 Republican presidential nominee has consistently signaled his desire to keep abortion exclusively a state issue. During a televised debate last month with President Joe Biden, he asserted that the 2021 Dobbs v. Jackson Supreme Court decision that reversed Roe v. Wade means that abortion is now up to the states.

Leading pro-life Republicans have echoed this sentiment, with Florida Sen. Marco Rubio saying in a Sunday CNN interview that “our platform has to reflect our nominee and our nominee’s position actually happens to be one grounded in reality … His position on this has been the reality that you can’t pass a federal law [protecting unborn life] even if we wanted to.”

The reaction from the pro-life community, meanwhile, was mixed.

Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, praised the platform, saying it demonstrates that the Republican Party “remains strongly pro-life at the national level.”

Kristi Hamrick, a representative for Students for Life Action, told CNA that while “not perfect” the platform represents “two very big wins” for the pro-life movement: acknowledging that the 14th Amendment protects all life, including unborn life, and condemning late-term abortion.

Hamrick said that she has been working with the Trump campaign and delegates to the Republican National Convention to stress the importance of the Republican Party prioritizing the protection of unborn life.

Even with a reduced legislative focus, Hamrick said there is a lot of important work a future Trump administration could do for the pro-life movement including reversing “a lot of weaponized federal policy” that she said is “prejudiced in favor of abortion.”

“If we detangled and cut out the cancer of abortion and abortion-related programming from our federal budgets, we can have a healthier budget and a life-affirming budget.” If Republicans were to achieve those wins under a Trump administration, Hamrick said it would constitute “a very vibrant and vigorous term.”

U.S. Bishops mark the 2nd anniversary of Dobbs, and the ending of Roe v. Wade

 

U.S. bishops commemorate 2nd anniversary of Dobbs ruling

The scene outside the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., after the court released its decision in the Dobbs abortion case on June 24, 2022. Pro-abortion demonstrators gradually made up a decided majority of the crowd as the day wore on. | Credit: Katie Yoder/CNA

By Gigi Duncan

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 24, 2024 / 06:00 am

The chairman of the U.S. Catholic bishops’ pro-life committee has released a statement commemorating the second anniversary of the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

Bishop Michael Burbidge of Arlington, Virginia, as chairman of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities, reflected on the challenges faced by the pro-life movement since the historic decision.

“On June 24, 2024, we celebrate the second anniversary of the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, ending the tragic reign of Roe v. Wade,” he said.

“It is a day for thanksgiving to God for answering our prayers and blessing the many years of hard work. This anniversary calls us to reflect on where we have been and where we are going,” Burbidge said.

He then noted recent defeats and upcoming challenges in the fight to protect life in the womb.

“Kansas, Michigan, and Ohio drastically expanded access to abortion,” he said. 

“This fall, as many as 10 additional states will have abortion referenda on their ballots, allowing voters to enshrine ‘abortion rights’ and override existing pro-life safeguards,” Burbidge noted.

Burbidge urged Catholics “to engage their elected officials on all issues endangering life.”

Burbidge then went on to reflect on the power of the Eucharist to transform the current culture, stating that he “cannot help but think the Holy Spirit has inspired our National Eucharistic Revival for such a time as this. Christ’s real presence in the Eucharist has the power to transform our own hearts and the heart of our culture.”

Amid these reflections, Burbidge acknowledged the ongoing commitment of various advocacy groups that assist women facing unexpected and difficult pregnancies. Initiatives such as Walking with Moms in Need exemplify the Church’s dedication to providing comprehensive “material, emotional, and spiritual support,” he said.

Furthermore, Burbidge recognized efforts such as Project Rachel and Respect Life Prayer and Action, which offer assistance to individuals affected by abortion and encourage proactive engagement in legislative processes.

“Jesus reminds us,” Burbidge cited, “’I have come so that they may have life and have it more abundantly’ (Jn 10:10). Let us unite in safeguarding the fight of life in all its stages and circumstances.”

This year, a unique convergence of historical milestones not only brings attention to the second anniversary of the Dobbs ruling but also the first National Eucharistic Congress of its kind in more than 80 years.

In recognizing this, Burbidge concluded his statement by inspiring all to “draw strength from our communion in the body and blood of Christ our savior” during this significant time.