A few months ago I was part of a panel discussion being broadcast on a Christian radio station. We were discussing tea party issues and the political impact of moral/social issues. I knew the other two members of the panel well enough to know that they were both staunch pro-life supporters. So, I was very surprised when they were surprised by my answer to their question: Do you use the pro-life issue as a litmus test for candidates? My answer was a resounding “YES!!!!”

Pro-life does matter

When I saw that my answer surprised them, I went on to explain that my litmus test was not just the result of my social beliefs. It was the result of my belief about the proper role government should play in our lives.

Signing of the Declaration of Independence.

Many understand that our Declaration of Independence was written as a declaration to the British government of why our colonies here in America were “dissolving their political bands which have connected them with another” – or in other words, why they were declaring their independence from Great Britain. They went on to declare the causes which impelled them to separate. Understanding this document is essential to understanding the very nature of our government, is why it is considered to be one of our foundational documents.

After making the declaration that we would be separating from the British government, our founders went into the details. However, before listing the details, they established the ideology that they based their declaration upon. Most of us are familiar with their topic sentence, which encapsulated their entire argument:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. (Emphasis added)

This topic sentence makes is clear that these are our God-given rights. Everything that follows supports the topic statement and the reasons why the British government was no longer valid in their eyes. The very next sentence brings home this point. It clearly states:

That to secure these rights (the rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness), governments are instituted among men…

Our founders understood and fought a war against all odds to protect their God-given rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. They believed that governments are instituted to protect these God-given rights. This is, therefore, the whole principle that they based the formation of our government upon. It is the root of the United States of America and the root of our government tree.

The Founders were pro-life. They said so.

Today we may view abortion as a choice but our founders viewed government’s fundamental role to be pro-life. Therefore, it only seems logical to me that if candidates do not understand the most basic function of government, they do not deserve our votes. Is it any wonder that since we have settled for pro-choice candidates that the very role of government has been perverted? How could men and women who do not understand that governments are instituted to protect life understand any of the other basic principles of government?

Should a candidate’s views on abortion be a litmus test of their ability to properly serve in government? You bet your sweet bippie…I mean you bet your life it should!

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