One of Trump's Cruelest Sins Was Preying on Families Who Just Want a Child

Mike Nellis

Trump has committed a hell of a lot of sins since stepping into political life. But one in particular that I carry closest to my heart is how he preyed on people who are desperate to have kids—people fighting through the agony of infertility just to grow a family.

It didn’t get the attention it deserved this weekend, but Trump straight-up abandoned his campaign promise to make IVF treatments free for every American. He pitched it during the campaign—something many of us called bullshit on from the start, because it didn’t line up ideologically and felt like a stunt—but the media treated it like a serious, good-faith promise. And apparently, a lot of voters in the middle believed him. People in the suburbs, especially women deeply uneasy with Trump, saw that promise and gave him the benefit of the doubt. It moved votes. It made a difference.

I write this with a heavy heart because I’m thinking about the four miscarriages my wife endured over the past few years. She went through absolute hell to have the one son we do have through IVF. He’s our miracle. We gave him a name that means “gift from God” because that’s what he is to us. And I don’t think anything in my life has wounded me more than what happened during our second pregnancy—when we went in one week and everything looked good, and the next week there was no heartbeat.

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I’ve lost people. I’ve buried family and friends. But nothing compares to that kind of grief. That raw, desperate, powerless grief. And it’s that pain that fuels my rage—because I know how many families are carrying that same grief. And I know how cruel it is for someone like Trump to exploit it for votes, knowing full well he never planned to lift a damn finger.

https://endlessurgency.com/p/one-of-trumps-cruelest-sins-was-preying