Trump Praises March For Life Participants As Vance Addresses Crowd

President Donald J. Trump delivered a message of gratitude and resolve Friday to tens of thousands of Americans gathered for the annual March for Life, praising students, families, and faith-based advocates who traveled to Washington to stand in defense of the unborn.

“For 53 years, students, families, patriots and believers have come to Washington from every corner of the country to defend the infinite worth and God-given dignity of every human life,” Trump said in a prerecorded message played during the event.

Trump emphasized that the 2026 March for Life coincides with the nation’s approaching 250th anniversary, linking the pro-life cause to the principles laid out in the Declaration of Independence. He said the milestone serves as a powerful reminder that America was founded on the belief that life is an inherent right bestowed by God and safeguarded—not granted—by government.

The president also reflected on his historic appearance at the March for Life six years ago, when he became the first sitting U.S. president to attend the event in person, a moment widely seen as signaling a new era of recognition and respect for the pro-life movement at the federal level.

Trump credited his administration with achieving what he called historic progress in protecting unborn children, pointing in particular to judicial appointments that reshaped the legal landscape.

“In my first term, I was honored to appoint judges and justices who believed in interpreting the Constitution as written,” Trump said. He added that those appointments resulted in what he described as “the greatest victory” in the history of the pro-life movement.

While underscoring the importance of legal and political victories, Trump stressed that defending life ultimately extends beyond courtrooms and elections.

“This is a battle that must be fought, must be won, not only in the corridors of power, but above all in the hearts and souls of the people,” he said.

Trump also outlined broader policies he said reflect his administration’s commitment to faith, family, and life, including protecting religious liberty, ending taxpayer-funded abortion at home and abroad, supporting faith-based adoption and foster care, and proposing a $1,000 investment account for every newborn child.

Those initiatives, he said, are designed to strengthen American families while affirming the value of every human life.

“With your help and support, we will continue to fight for the eternal truth that every child is a gift from God,” Trump said in closing.

For the second consecutive year, Vice President JD Vance attended the March for Life and addressed attendees in person during a pre-march rally themed “Life Is a Gift.”

“Under this administration, again from the president of the United States, the vice president, you have an ally in the White House now,” Vance told the crowd.

Vance said the administration has spent the past year dismantling policies from the previous administration that he argued targeted religious expression and expanded taxpayer-funded abortion.

“We started by undoing the evils we saw under the previous administration, like throwing priests and grandmothers in prison for praying outside a clinic,” Vance said. “That’s over. We stopped it.”

He added that the administration ended mandates for taxpayer-funded abortion-related travel and restored religious liberty protections across federal agencies.

“Over the past year we’ve built steadily upon the victories of the president’s first term,” Vance said. “We have secured religious freedom in the United States of America once again.”

Vance also shared personal news with the crowd, announcing that he and Second Lady Usha Vance are expecting their fourth child—a moment that drew cheers from attendees and underscored the rally’s central message.