You don’t have to be a woman to know that rape is a violent criminal act that should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. I would like to see the death penalty attached to the crime.

Our so-called rehabilitation-oriented criminal justice system has done a disservice to women by treating rape like a property crime. We’re repeatedly told that no one is really responsible for their behavior. People are a product of their environment, and that must include the rapist.

When anti-abortion Republicans answer questions about rape and abortion, they get tongue-tied. They mean well, but they do a terrible job explaining their position. It cost the GOP two Senate seats in the last election.

As George W. Bush’s former aide Karen Hughes told Politico, “If another Republican man says anything about rape other than it is a horrific, violent crime, I want to personally cut out his tongue.”

I agree.

Supporters of abortion always bring up rape as a reason why abortion should be legal. If abortion is outlawed, then a woman who is raped and gets pregnant will have no recourse but to carry the innocent victim of rape to term.

The rape poison-pill question is a smokescreen, a red herring to keep pro-lifers off balance and turn the pro-abortion media against them.

Here’s how I would deal with the rape question after making it clear that rape is a violent crime that should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law and then some.1 I would ask the following question:

“Are you saying that the 1.35 million abortions in the United States are performed because of pregnancies that were the result of rape?”

While women do get pregnant after being raped, the number does NOT come near to approaching 1.35 million. Let’s say the number of pregnancies from rape and incest is in the 200,000 range. The actual number is much lower (and still a horrible statistic), but for the sake of argument and to illustrate the point, let’s use a very big number.

That leaves 1.15 million non-rape abortions performed each year.

Now let’s put another question to the pro-abortionists:

“In order to protect a woman’s right to abortion if she gets pregnant as the result of rape, you want to legalize abortion for all women. Let’s say I agree with you and add the rape, incest, and physical life of mother exceptions to legislation, will you oppose all other abortions since it seems it’s these three items that concern you?”

I would go so far as to say, “I’ll support you on these exceptions if you support me on outlawing abortion in all other cases.” Pro-abortionists won’t agree to the offer. The offer is only being made to prove a point.

Pro-life advocates know that the pre-born baby is not the criminal and should not die for an act he did not commit. That’s why many victims of rape carry their baby to term. Like his mother, he’s a victim. The exceptions issue should only be discussed when the smokescreen issue is dealt with. Don’t get off topic.

Public opinion would be the next step. We would immediately go to the American people and say, “Pro-abortionists are using rape victims to obscure the fact that more than a million babies are aborted every year in America, and it’s not because of rape. All they want to do is protect the killing of innocent pre-born babies for any and all reasons.”

1. I realize that some men have been falsely but innocently accused of rape and have spent years in prison for a crime they did not commit. Some women have knowingly and maliciously made false rape accusations. Tawana Brawley, falsely accused six white men of raping her. In the 2006 Duke Lacrosse case a student at North Carolina Central University falsely accused three white Duke University students, members of the men’s lacrosse team, of raping her at a party. While false rape accusations are also criminal, the topic is not germane to this discussion. [↩]