Life Wins in Court!
Life on the Line
In this week’s episode of Life on the Line, we’re joined by PLU legal intern Giovanni Ciraulo and Carolyn McDonnell, Litigation Counsel at Americans United for Life, the largest pro-life legal advocacy group in the country. Carolyn is working on the front lines of some of the most important judicial questions in the nation, bringing vast experience in constitutional law, federal litigation, and defending the rights of pregnancy resource centers. With expertise in areas like chemical abortion, conscience rights, and assisted suicide, she helps unpack what’s really happening behind the scenes in the courts and in federal policy. In this episode, we dig into the recent wave of major decisions shaping the post-Dobbs landscape: the wins, the setbacks, and the courtroom battles unfolding right now. Carolyn offers an expert perspective on what these cases mean, what’s coming next, and why it matters. Don’t miss this inside look at the legal fight for life you won’t hear anywhere else.
About Podcast
Life on the Line with Chris Pushaw
"Life on the Line" covers the week in the pro-life world in the Delaware Valley. It weaves in news, events and prayer to capture the pulse of the Culture of Life in Philadelphia. We also feature guests from over 25 related organizations to give an informed and comprehensive picture of where things stand in terms of neonatal care, support, and counseling, public advocacy and educational outreach. We welcome guests from all backgrounds and political perspectives for the purpose of reasoned and respectful debate on what is admittedly the "third rail" of American cultural discourse.
Christopher Pushaw serves as the President of the Pro-Life Union of Greater Philadelphia. Prior to that he ran the primary campaign for Mark Houck in the First Congressional District of Pennsylvania. Chris comes to the Pro-Life Union with an extensive background in pro-life and legal advocacy. He had served as Executive Director and General Counsel for the Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation, the largest of its kind in the Commonwealth and the official state affiliate for the National Right to Life Committee. In that capacity, he coordinated legislative and educational outreach with respect to pro-life issues as well as grassroots activity throughout the state. Chris got started in area pro-life outreach as a volunteer speaker for and later President of Pennsylvanians for Human Life, using his legal background to trace the genesis of Roe and its legal, ethical and cultural ramifications in schools throughout the Delaware Valley. He also represented children in Family Court in Philadelphia through the Child Advocacy clinic and was involved in the Big Brothers program.
Chris has been a practicing “Philadelphia Lawyer” for twenty-five years. Chris earned his undergraduate degree at The Catholic University of America, a master’s degree from the University of Wisconsin (where he attended a talk given by Sarah Weddington, the lawyer who represented “Jane Roe”) and finally Yale Law School, where he wrote a major research paper on genetic screening and partial birth abortion.