It’s safe to say the abortion issue was in the forefront of many people’s minds on election day. If you listened to voters’ reasons for supporting Trump, many brought up how he would protect unborn life in the United States.

But will he really? That seems to be a complicated answer.

In September, Trump chose Marjorie Dannenfelser, head of the Susan B. Anthony List, to head his new pro-life coalition. That was quite the about-face since Dannenfelser and others had called Donald out in a press release in January, warning that the candidate was unacceptable on issues pertaining to life and the dignity of women.

On the issue of defending unborn children and protecting women from the violence of abortion, Mr. Trump cannot be trusted…

The next president will be responsible for as many as four nominations to the Supreme Court…Mr. Trump has said his sister, Judge Maryanne Trump Barry, who struck down the Partial Birth Abortion Ban in New Jersey, would be a “phenomenal” choice for the court.

Moreover, as women, we are disgusted by Mr. Trump’s treatment of individuals, women, in particular.

America will only be a great nation when we have leaders of strong character who will defend both unborn children and the dignity of women. We cannot trust Donald Trump to do either.

What was sharp, precise language then slowly turned into approval and finally, coalition.

On the issue of life, Trump has been his usual flip-flopping self. For an issue which is, I believe, as black and white as they come, this is unsettling. I, for one, did not want to put my faith in a man who declares different positions on abortion and the laws that protect the legal homicide.

In an interview in April on CBS, Trump said the following about abortion laws (emphasis mine):

Dickerson asked about current laws on abortion: “Do you have a feeling how they should change? There’re a lot of laws you want to change. You’ve talked about everything from libel to torture. Anything you’d want to change on abortion?”

Instead, Trump appeared to further muddy where he stands on the issue.

Trump’s responded that the laws should stay as they are for the time being. “At this moment the laws are set. And I think we have to leave it that way,” he said.

Pro-life candidates who are fiercely determined to protect unborn life would never waver when questioned on the matter. Either Trump was unprepared, which is disconcerting, or he actually believed at the time nothing should change, which is frightening.

At the last presidential debate, Trump declared he would place pro-life justices on the Supreme Court in an effort to overturn Roe v. Wade, and place the issue back in the hands of individual states. So is he determined now to protect unborn life, or will his position shift in the months ahead as many of his positions seem to do? Difficult to say for sure.

As regards his own party, Trump has said he would like to change the GOP’s position on abortion to include exceptions for rape and incest. This is without a doubt not a pro-life position. If he were truly a committed crusader for the unborn, those two exceptions would never be entertained. As those of us who are truly pro-life know, unborn life conceived in crime should not be punished.

It’s also important to note that Trump’s position on abortion, which changes depending on what day of the week it is, has never be prominently displayed among his policies. Earlier this week, it was noted that on Trump’s website, anything related to abortion or unborn life had been removed. Patheos clarified what happened to some missing press releases, but mention of abortion itself among Trump’s policies has always been absent.

…it appears that what eyewitnesses report having initially seen was not the site itself, but a posted press release. All press releases have been removed. The site itself, it seems, has never listed anything about opposing abortion or defense of life as one of Trump’s policies.

And so, Catholics and pro-lifers have been sold a line, indeed.

Although we might not be able to pin down a consistent position on many issues, it seems clear that abortion is not on the forefront of Trump’s mind, no matter what his supporters hoped.

As a member of #NeverTrump still, I do hope that once President Trump is in office he proves me wrong on this and many other issues. I hope he tones down the insults, ups the decency, and governs as a conservative would and should. However, his behavior this campaign and his obvious wavering on the very important issue of life is certainly troublesome.