Opinion | Youngkin’s biggest problem on abortion isn’t Democrats

The first moment came last Saturday, when 5th District Republican Rep. Bob Good led a pro-life rally on the state capital grounds. Good’s message was clear as crystal, as reported by WTVR:

“Republicans should not be negotiating the timeline on when abortion should be permitted or when abortion is OK or when it’s OK to take life in the womb,” Good said. “Republicans ought to stand openly, boldly, and unashamedly for life from conception and to protect all life in the womb.”

It was a warning to Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) and the four state legislators he charged with drafting an abortion bill that bans abortion, with some exceptions, after 15 weeks — or 20 weeks, if that’s what it takes to get something through the Democratic-controlled Senate.

Youngkin expanded on the compromise idea during his Sunday appearance on Face the Nation, giving us our second consequential moment:

“The reality is that as a pro-life governor in a state like Virginia where I have a Senate that’s controlled by Democrats and a House that’s controlled by Republicans, we have to find a way to get things done.”

In other words, a compromise — whatever it takes to get self-described pro-life Del. Joseph D. Morrissey (D-Richmond) to break ranks and give the tiebreaking Senate vote on new restrictions to the chamber’s presiding officer, pro-life Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears (R).

It would be easy to dismiss the chances of Good and those in his ideological corner getting their views enacted in a state that still has deep purple hallmarks. It might even be difficult to get every Republican to vote for an absolute abortion ban.

But dismissing Good & Co. entirely misunderstands where a fair portion of the Republican base is on abortion. They will settle for nothing less than a complete ban — even if it means turning against Republican lawmakers who know the votes just aren’t there to pass such a bill.

And yes: That means the antiabortion maximalists would turn against Youngkin, too — if necessary. He knows it, too, which helps explain Youngkin’s earlier comments to the Family Foundation, as reported by The Post’s Laura Vozzella:

“My goal is that we, in fact, get a bill to sign. It won’t be the bill that we all want,” he said, going on to note that he believes “life begins at inception” — a slip of the tongue, according to a Youngkin spokesman, who said the governor meant to say “conception.”

That’s a politician working to prevent a split that could damage more than just a restriction bill’s passage. It’s a pol trying to give cover to Republican lawmakers and his own future political ambitions.

Youngkin’s real worry, and Job No. 1 for his four-member bill-writing team, isn’t winning Joe Morrissey’s favor. That’s all just politics.

The biggest challenge has always been how to handle the like of Bob Good, whose viewpoint is gaining traction in Virginia GOP circles.

Consider: Good’s discharge petition on his bill to extend “equal protection under the 14th article of amendment to the Constitution for the right to life of each born and preborn human person” is starting to get more signatures. Though it’s still a long way from the majority needed to put the bill to a floor vote, there were a couple of Virginia Republicans in the mix: Ben Cline and Rob Wittman.