J.D., a conservative Catholic convert, is naturally a sincere and passionate opponent of abortion. His boss, on the other hand, sees the issue as a potential hand grenade, and does his best to avoid saying or doing anything about it. J.D. swallowed his scruples to become part of the ticket. What will he do if he becomes the leading man?
This will be a tough one for him. If he continues the Trumpian line, he will be accused of being an opportunist and a hypocrite, and he will open up a line of attack from the religious right element of the base. If he doesn’t, he risks inflaming the majority opinion against him and losing the general election. How will he square the circle?
I think he will say that our current experience, to say nothing of Prohibition, tells us that legislation alone will not eliminate a practice with majority support; the real task is to win over hearts and minds. As a result, he will speak against abortion at every opportunity, but he won’t attempt to take legislative or administrative action against it until it becomes clear that the public supports him on the issue.