Jan. 23 (UPI) — Vice President JD Vance told March for Life participants that he understands their frustration but assured them that more progress will be made to curb abortions.
Vance addressed the 53rd annual March for Life event on Friday, telling attendees that the proverbial “elephant in the room” is that little progress has been made to rein in abortion at the federal level.
“We are going to continue to make strides over the next three years to come,” Vance said, adding that abortion is an existential matter.
“It is about whether we remain a civilization under God, or whether we will ultimately return to the paganism that has dominated the past,” Vance told march attendees.
“There is still much road ahead to travel together,” he said, as reported by PBS. “Let the record show, you have a vice president who practices what he preaches.”
The annual pro-life event drew many participants who expressed frustration that more has not been done to restrict abortion after the Supreme Court in 2022 overturned Roe v Wade and left such laws up to respective states.
Vance, 41, called that decision the most important made by the Supreme Court during his lifetime.
He also cited the expansion of the federal government’s policy against providing foreign aid to organizations that support providers of abortion services.
“We believe that every country in the world has the duty to protect life,” Vance told March for Life participants.
The annual event drew tens of thousands to the nation’s capital, where they gathered on the National Mall before proceeding to the Supreme Court.
Many were dismayed that the Trump administration has not done more to follow up on the Supreme Court ruling.
“This administration has not moved when it absolutely could move,” Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, told media on Thursday.
“This is not the direction that we were hoping for,” she added.
While the Trump administration has focused on other matters during the president’s second term in office, the abortion matter largely has been relegated to individual states.