High-risk pregnancy (lupus) scenario — saving the mother is a pro-life position, not abortion by definition

Mike reiterates that if both mother and child will die without intervention, a procedure to save the mother is pro-life, not abortion. If the child is viable, doctors will try to keep it alive. If not viable and the mother would otherwise die, saving the mother at the cost of the child's life is the unintended result of a life-saving procedure. He adds that no serious pro-life advocate proposes legislation preventing such procedures. The intent — deliberate killing of the child as the goal — is what distinguishes abortion from life-saving medical intervention.