Providing for Life Act would be a bold step toward a pro-life America
Hudson Crozier
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Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-IA) has reintroduced the Providing for Life Act, which would not only raise the federal child tax credit, but extend it to unborn children. From conception to a child’s fifth birthday, parents would be eligible for up to a $3,500 break.
Hinson first introduced the bill last year after the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision, and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) introduced a counterpart in the Senate, but the proposal has not yet gotten the attention it deserves. The push by some on the right to make unborn babies tax dependents at the federal and state levels remains persistent.
TRUTH IS THE FIRST CASUALTY OF LIBERAL MEDIA’S WAR ON DESANTIS
Before anyone entertains the nonsense that all tax credits are like liberal welfare policies or “socialism,” let’s remember what conservatives agree on: Washington taxes us way, way too much and is horribly wasteful with our money. Hinson’s bill allows parents to keep a modest amount of that money in a way that rewards them for having children. This is not rewarding bad behavior like refusing to work.
In Hinson’s words: “The Providing for Life Act charts the policy course for a culture of life in America — it is about valuing life at every stage and making critical investments in the long-term well-being of families.” The pro-life movement has long prioritized children outside the womb and families in general, contrary to the narratives of abortion supporters who don’t pay attention. This is another way to do that. It could even encourage mothers with unplanned pregnancies to keep their babies in states that allow abortion.
Perhaps more importantly, this change would set an important precedent about the humanity of the unborn. It would recognize in United States law, at least linguistically, that unborn children are, in fact, children. Abortion advocates have opposed the idea for this precise reason.
But unlike activists who can be as crazy as they want, politicians have to win elections. The bill, therefore, has the added bonus of putting Democrats in a conundrum if they are ever forced to vote on it. Their party has aggressively supported expansions to the tax credit for older children. What will they do: reject the bill and look hypocritical and heartless, or undermine the anti-life philosophy behind the abortion movement?
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Hudson Crozier is a summer 2023 Washington Examiner fellow.