No matter what some senators say publicly, in the upcoming Senate hearings addressing the nomination of Judge Samuel A. Alito Jr. for a place on the Supreme Court, many votes will be determined by Alito’s stance regarding abortion. Knowing this brought to mind an observation given me more than 35 years ago.

The comment made to me in 1970 came from the wife of a John Birch Society colleague who overheard her husband and me discussing the wording of an anti-abortion statement we were crafting. New York and Colorado had already eased restrictions on the grisly practice, and the national government seemed to be heading in the very same direction. The assignment we were working on came our way three years before the Supreme Court’s infamous Roe v. Wade decision that voided all state laws criminalizing abortion. We two concluded that there was no other way to address the issue than to state that “abortion is murder.” Having overheard much of our discussion, my friend’s wife remarked to the two of us, “If there’s a need for you or anyone to publish a statement telling Americans that abortion is wrong, I fear for the future of this country.” I have never forgotten those words.

After our single-page statement gained the approval of our superiors, it was published under the banner of the Movement To Restore Decency (MOTOREDE), an ad hoc committee of The John Birch Society. We can only guess how many tens of thousands of copies of the flyer were distributed by Society activists all across the nation. But the effort wasn’t enough, and our worst fears were realized in January 1973 when the Supreme Court ruled 7-2 to legalize the killing of the unborn.

Many Americans were outraged by the court’s ruling. Right to Life groups sprang up in many states and especially at the national level. There were threats to impeach pro-abortion judges, campaigns to amend the Constitution, and demands issued that future appointments to the high court must be given only to pro-life stalwarts. Nevertheless, more than a million infants in the womb have been sacrificed each and every year. Reasonable estimates note that upwards of 45 million babies have been snuffed out since Roe v. Wade was enshrined as the supposed “law of the land.”

As soon as President Bush named Judge Alito as his choice for the seat of retiring Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, the nominee’s history regarding abortion became the chief issue. A television crew immediately filmed his 85-year-old mother at the front door of her New Jersey home stating of her son, “Of course he’s opposed to abortion.” Researchers uncovered a decades-old job application in which the judge stated, “The Constitution does not protect a right to an abortion.” While working in the Reagan-era Justice Department, he devised a never-employed strategy to overturn Roe. But, pressed about his past statements and inclinations, he has announced his respect for legal precedents, one of which is found in the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision.

Only Samuel Alito himself knows precisely where he stands on abortion, including whether or not he believes Roe v. Wade should be overturned. But the point we wish to stress is that more than a few members of the U.S. Senate will base their vote to approve or disapprove his nomination almost solely on their perception of his stance on this issue. Some will question the judge about other topics, but uppermost in the minds of many will be the supposed need to protect the precedent established in 1973. It is a telling indication that America is losing its moral compass.

Over the past several decades, tens of millions of America’s women have resorted to abortion. An equal number of men have urged doing away with the infant they fathered. These persons are voters, and abortion is paramount in their assessment of candidates for office at any level. Their reliance on abortion has inclined them and political wannabes to abandon the morals, manners, customs, and traditions that have always characterized our nation. Government, not any religion-based moral code, has become the arbiter of right and wrong. Abortion has dulled many consciences — not just regarding abortion but with other moral deviations that our parents and grandparents considered abominations. These days, millions of Americans either accept or don’t speak out about homosexuality, pornography, sexual license in films and television, spreading acceptance of euthanasia, drug use, etc.

A return to the moral base upon which this nation was built has to include turning away from abortion. Our nation’s Founding Fathers would be horrified at what has happened. In his Farewell Address, George Washington stated: “Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, Religion and Morality are indispensable supports.” The religious-based morality referenced by the Father of Our Country prohibited abortion in his day, and the prohibition it spawned prevailed in this nation for almost 200 years until 1973’s Roe v. Wade reversal. The worry for the future of our country uttered in my presence 35 years ago because of a minor acceptance of this grisly practice has only increased.

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