On Politics: The Republicans who want to Make America Have Babies Again
The Republicans who want to Make America Have Babies Again
JD Vance's three-year-old complaint that the country was being run by "childless cat ladies" like Vice President Kamala Harris has prompted bipartisan outrage and made the Ohio senator's campaign to be vice president look wobbly before it has barely begun. But, if you listen carefully, you'll see that it is part of a discussion that Vance and some other Republicans appear eager to have. Vance, 39, has long spoken publicly about his concerns about the falling American birthrate — and it's not just him. During the Republican National Convention two weeks ago, talk about the importance of having babies was so prominent, I wondered if "Make America Procreate Again" was becoming a party tagline. There is much to unpack here. Vance's old comments — and his defense of them — have pushed the thorny and deeply personal politics of reproduction center stage in an election that Democrats were already eager to turn into a referendum on women's personal freedoms on issues like abortion and birth control. They also coincide with outlandish conspiracy theories about Democrats trying to replace natural-born Americans with immigrants. So, tonight, let's take a look at a theme I think could shape this election even after the furor over Vance's comments dies down. A matter of birthrateOn Friday, Vance defended his comments in an interview with the SiriusXM host Megyn Kelly, saying his comments about Harris were "sarcasm," but that his larger concern was that Democrats were "anti-family" and "anti-child." He also chastised the country's low birthrate. Vance's original comments drew pushback from the White House. The discussion of the nation's birthrate, however, was music to the ears of Terry Schilling, the president of the American Principles Project, a national conservative advocacy group, and the father of seven children. "I think what JD's really getting at is the fact that the family's been forgotten in America," Schilling said. "The discussion around America's families in relation to our falling birthrates is long overdue." According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the fertility rate in America dropped to a historic low this year. Adults who don't plan to have children cite many reasons, including economic concerns, a lack of a social safety net, an inability to conceive and simply not wanting to. In an interview with The Wall Street Journal this year, Vance cast this as an economic problem, and also as a reflection of America's lack of patriotism. He has previously said that people without children should pay higher taxes. I heard similar comments from the stage at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. Charlie Kirk, the 30-year-old founder of the conservative youth organization Turning Point USA, proudly told the crowd he had two children under the age of 2, and blamed President Biden's economic policies for low birthrates. "Democrats have given hundreds of billions of dollars to illegals and foreign nations, while Generation Z has to pinch pennies so they can never own a home, never marry and work until they die, childless," Kirk said. Several speakers made a point of telling the crowd how many children they have — five, seven and even, for one speaker, 11. Gov. Kristi Noem of South Dakota bragged that her state has the highest fertility rate in the nation. "People are having babies because they are happy," she said, to applause. "And in South Dakota, we love babies." Fodder for Democratic attacksIn recent years, falling birthrates have been a concern of several prominent figures on the right, including Elon Musk (who has many children of his own) and Tucker Carlson. Those concerns, experts on right-wing politics say, coincide with the spread of the "great replacement theory," which is the unsubstantiated idea that immigrants are coming to the United States to dilute the power of native-born, white voters. "What's sotto voce being said is, 'not enough white babies' — that's really the problem," said Philip Gorski, a sociologist at Yale who has studied Christian nationalism. Schilling said his concern with the birthrate has nothing to do with race. In his Friday interview, Vance, who is married to the daughter of Indian immigrants, said he had nothing against immigrants. But my colleague Jazmine Ulloa pointed out that Vance echoed tenets of replacement theory when he said without evidence in his interview with Kelly that Democrats believed they could "replace American children with immigrants." Democrats have already had a field day with Vance's "childless cat lady" comments. There are signs they will take aim at Republicans' broader concern with procreation and the birthrate, too. On Monday, a super PAC aimed at youth voters called Won't PAC Down posted an ad to X suggesting that Republicans' focus on people's private sexual conduct is just plain "weird," drawing on an attack line that has been deployed by Harris and some of her allies. "Your genitals are reserved for procreation," says an elderly white man in a sweater vest, as ominous music plays.
Biden turns his focus to his legacyFour weeks ago, I wrote about how President Biden was trying to suppress the historical comparison between himself and Lyndon Johnson, the last Democratic president to bow out of his re-election campaign. Today, as Biden spoke at the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library and Museum in Austin, Texas, he sought to use that comparison to his benefit. My colleague Katie Rogers, a White House correspondent who traveled to Austin with Biden, tells us more. Officially, Biden went to Austin today to call for changes to the Supreme Court. But this trip is just as much about the president's effort to button up his legacy as a transformative legislative force. It has been only eight days since Mr. Biden, 81, announced that he was ending his re-election bid and turning the keys of his campaign over to Vice President Kamala Harris. The biggest change, so far, is how quickly Ms. Harris has surged into the spotlight and how willingly Biden has seemed to step back. In Austin, though, he tried to place himself within the scope of history, highlighting the civil rights-focused legislation that Johnson had signed into law as president, and tying the aim of his own political career to furthering civil liberties. But their exits from the presidential stage came under different circumstances. Johnson, facing low approval ratings and after grappling with the political repercussions of the Vietnam War, announced that he would step down in 1968. What happened to Biden is rare for any president — he was all but forced from his campaign by leaders of his own party after his dismal debate performance in June. Johnson was also the Democratic president who signed the Civil Rights Act into law. And Biden might be hoping that invites more welcome comparisons. Indeed, one of the event's organizers, Mark Updegrove, praised the president onstage in Austin for a legacy focused on the "strengthening of democracy." Biden's trip to Austin gave him the chance to remind Americans that much of his life has been spent championing legislation that has promoted equal rights, protected people from gun violence and domestic violence, invested in the country's crumbling infrastructure and twice delivered major financial relief to Americans during times of crisis. Biden's push for changes to the Supreme Court, including proposals that would impose term limits and an enforceable code of ethics on justices, will be one of his last efforts to encourage legislation that he sees as making life more equitable for Americans at a time of increased partisanship on the court. His effort has little hope of passing with a Republican-controlled Congress and a divided Senate, of course, but if the makeup of Congress changes after November — and if those proposed changes become a strong campaign issue for Democrats before that — the effort could eventually add to his long legacy. — Katie Rogers Read past editions of the newsletter here. If you're enjoying what you're reading, please consider recommending it to others. They can sign up here. Have feedback? Ideas for coverage? We'd love to hear from you. Email us at onpolitics@nytimes.com.
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