During his confirmation hearing before the U.S. Senate on Wednesday, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche faced a range of questions from Republicans regarding the abortion drug mifepristone. While the AG hopeful defended President Donald Trump’s record on defending unborn life and the recent shift in policy within the Trump administration, which many have suggested appears to be inaction on the abortion drug in particular, Blanche did commit to addressing the abortion pill crisis as attorney general.

“First, President Trump is the most pro-life president in history, and the work that this department is doing is something that hasn’t been done in 10 years,” Blanche insisted, in response to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa). He added that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are in the process of conducting studies around the dangers of mifepristone.

While repeatedly asserting that he will not discuss “litigation strategies,” Blanche did clarify that the Department of Justice (DOJ) is waiting for HHS and FDA to complete their mifepristone studies in order to use those studies in federal court. “We have to have studies that we can defend in court. We have to say to a judge that our change was not arbitrary and capricious,” Blanche told Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.). “So, we are trying to let the FDA do their work so that we can work to protect the lives of the unborn children and, frankly, the states’ laws, like Missouri, which are what’s being violated.”

Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) pressed Blanche on enforcing the Comstock Act, which bars the mailing of abortion-inducing drugs. Under former President Joe Biden, the DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) ruled that mailing mifepristone does not violate the Comstock Act. Cruz asked, “Will you commit to carefully reviewing that opinion to ensure that it … faithfully reflects the actual statutory text that Congress enacted?” Blanche replied, “Yes.” Cruz continued, “[W]ill you commit that the department will carefully evaluate every lawful action available to ensure the faithful enforcement of the Comstock Act and other federal pro-life acts?” Again, Blanche responded, “Yes.”

Blanche further stressed that the Trump DOJ is not defending the Biden administration’s diluting of regulations surrounding the abortion drug. “Suffice it to say, Chairman, we are not, in any way, defending what Biden and what his administration did,” Blanche told Grassley. At issue is the case of Louisiana v. FDA. Louisiana led a coalition of red states with pro-life laws in place in a lawsuit demanding that the FDA reinstate previous safeguards prohibiting the remote prescription and shipping of the abortion drug, in an effort to block abortionists in blue states like California and New York from mailing mifepristone into states where the drug is illegal. Under Trump, the DOJ has requested that the lawsuit be dismissed.

“My state has a number of laws that protect the unborn … and that includes laws that limit the use of the chemical abortion drug. Now, as you know, Joe Biden gutted all those restrictions … so my state went to court to defend those laws,” Hawley recounted, noting that Missouri joined the lawsuit. “I hate that we have these Republican states in court against a Republican administration. There has to be some solution to this. What do you think that is?” he asked.

“I share your concerns, as does this entire administration,” Blanche responded, calling Trump the “most pro-life president in history.” He continued, “I don’t want to get into litigation strategies here, it’s not appropriate, but I will say, as we said in our briefing, we are not defending what Biden did and will not.” Blanche added, “We — and when I say we, I don’t just mean the Department of Justice, I mean President Trump’s administration in its entirety — will protect the life of the unborn and work with states and, obviously, with you, to make sure we do that in the best way.” He suggested, “I want to get to a solution as well, I just don’t think it’s appropriate to speak on legislative strategies here, senator.”

“You are not defending Biden’s abortion policy in court, right?” Hawley asked. Blanche responded that none of the DOJ’s court documents in the case defend the Biden administration’s policy. “This gets to my original point where I don’t think that it is appropriate to discuss legal strategies here,” the acting attorney general explained, “except that we are seeking a solution consistent with President Trump’s administrative directives and priorities, and we very much believe that the Biden rules were wrong.”

However, more than a year after the Trump administration promised an FDA review of mifepristone, pro-life leaders are weary of waiting, while hundreds of thousands of unborn children are killed in the womb, pregnant mothers are coerced into consuming mifepristone pills, and red state laws are violated. “This is one area if President Trump wants to be able to cement his legacy as a remarkable pro-life president, that they have the opportunity to be able to correct, and that is to go back through the FDA to the former standards that were applicable for the prescribing of mifepristone,” Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall (R) said in a “Washington Watch” appearance Wednesday night, “to make sure that it’s in person, that it’s done by a physician, and ensures opportunities to not only protect women’s health in a way that we’ve never done before, but also have the opportunity to be able to protect life today.”

Marshall noted that former President Barack Obama first weakened the safety regulations surrounding the prescribing and dispensing of mifepristone, before the Biden administration did away with nearly all of the remaining safeguards, citing COVID-19 concerns. “[This is] one of the many things that we saw adversely occur as a result of the policies that came from the pandemic. But this is one they can change,” Marshall said. He also confirmed that senior officials in Trump’s HHS are concerned over the dangers posed by mifepristone and are aware of the impact of the issue on Republican voters. “I do believe they’re taking it serious,” he said, “but … I don’t think we need another year to be able to do a study. The information is there. It’s time now for action.”

Senator John Cornyn (R-Texas), a member of the Judiciary Committee, also appeared on “Washington Watch,” confirming that his office had sent a letter to Blanche asking him to restore prior Trump-era protections surrounding the use of mifepristone. “I think a lot of people feel like this is something that people can take and there really aren’t any downsides to it and do it without a doctor’s supervision. The previous rule under President Trump was that there had to be an interaction with the physician, rather than just do this online or through the mail,” Cornyn explained. “So actually what we’re asking for is a restoration of the Trump-era rule and not eliminating the Biden-era rule,” he continued. “But we [in] the letter asked Todd Blanch to look at that case and perhaps consider entering a consent decree, restoring the Trump-era rule and overriding the Biden-era modification.”

Cornyn agreed with Blanche that Trump has a strong pro-life record, adding, “But on this issue, they seem to be somewhat ambivalent. As I said in today’s hearing, if President Trump is the most pro-life president we’ve had, this should be an easy call.” The senator continued, “All we’re asking for is a restoration of the Trump-era rule and eliminating the Biden-era modification, which I believe is a danger to the health of pregnant women who take this drug … not knowing of the potential for serious side effects.” He added, “There have been instances where third parties have secretly given this drug to a pregnant girlfriend or someone else, unbeknownst to them, and cause serious problems.”

Cornyn emphasized that pro-life Republicans are now waiting on Blanche. “I told him I expect that response before we vote on his nomination on the floor.”