Tomi Lahren’s Comments Spark Conversation On Conservative Thought

By Shane Longoria 

Following her public change of stance about abortion, Tomi Lahren has been permanently terminated from the popular conservative network The Blaze, leading to a debate about the tenets of conservative ideology.

After Lahren’s appearance on “The View,” during which she said her belief in limited government includes her views on the issue of abortion – she is pro-choice – she immediately faced public backlash, leading to her suspension and eventual termination from her show on The Blaze.

Tomi Lahren speaking at the 2016 Politicon at the Pasadena Convention Center in Pasadena, California. Gage Skidmore/Flickr

Alec Wallace, chairman of the Young Conservatives of Texas at Tech, said he disagreed with Lahren’s logic, as it contradicts conservatives’ views on individual liberty.

“We see this as the taking away of rights,” Wallace said. “That child has the right to live.”

Wallace said the conservative position goes beyond the choice of any woman, and should be focused on the child’s right to live.

J.T. Cary, vice chairman of YCT, said he disagreed with Lahren’s argument that if the government should stay out of her right to own guns, it should also stay out of her right to have an abortion.

“It makes sense if you don’t think about it like it’s a life,” Cary said. “But if we know that the heart’s beating, it’s breathing – it’s a living and breathing thing – we can’t just kill that.”

Philip Arabome, who identifies as an Independent, said he agrees with Lahren’s argument, and more conservatives should follow Lahren on this issue.

“She’s right. It is hypocritical to be a conservative and say, ‘I want limited government – I want the government out of things – but we want to use the power of the government to ban abortions,” Arabome said.

Arabome said conservatives should be pro-choice if they want to remain consistent in their belief in limited government.

For many conservatives, the issue of abortion is tied closely to their religious beliefs, which are largely Christian.

According to a Gallup poll conducted in 2016, 74 percent of Americans subscribe to a Christian religion.

Both Arabome and Wallace, who identify as non-religious, said abortion should be informed by science and reason rather than religion.

“The fact is, we could be killing a lot of life,” Wallace said. “It’s not morally correct to take away someone’s rights if we aren’t 100 percent about it.”

“It’s all about liberty and autonomy,” Arabome said. “If you’re going to be the side that pretends to be the pro-liberty side, the pro-freedom side, you should support autonomy for women.”

According to another Gallup poll conducted in 2016, 43 percent of Americans said they believed abortion was morally acceptable, and 46 percent said it was morally wrong.

Arabome said that moving forward, conservatives need to move toward a libertarian position led by younger Americans in order to truly be on the side of liberty.

“For them to continue to play this plodding morality game, pro-life game, Christian school game – it’s not going to work,” Arabome said.

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