WASHINGTON _ Vice President Mike Pence promised thousands of anti-abortion activists gathered for the March for Life that Donald Trump's administration will keep its pledge to name a conservative to the Supreme Court.
Pence, the first sitting vice president to address this annual rally, said their movement was on the verge of victory with conservatives in control of both the White House and Congress. And soon a conservative will tilt the balance on the Supreme Court as well.
"Life is winning in America," Pence said. "That is evident in the election of pro-life majorities in the Congress of the United States of America."
The crowd erupted in cheers, reflecting what many described as a feeling that victory for the anti-abortion movement was in reach for the first time in more than a decade.
"It feels different. For the first time, the administration is on our side," said Brenna Lewis, a 22-year-old from Lexington, Ky. The employee with Students for Life of America _ a national organization that provides training, resources and support for anti-abortion college and high school student groups _ handed out "I Am the Pro-Life Generation" signs.
"This is like the Super Bowl for the pro-life movement," she said
The march begins at the Washington Monument following the musical rally and guest speakers, and concludes at the Supreme Court.
Pence called on the spirited crowd to carry out their rally and march with gentleness and to approach women who are pregnant "with generosity, not judgment."
Lewis was particularly excited for another of the day's speakers: top Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway. In years past, Republican presidents and senior officials have only called in to the conference.
On Friday morning, Trump tweeted that he's in "full support" of the March for Life.
Trump wrote: "The #MarchForLife is so important. To all of you marching _ you have my full support!"
On the campaign trail, Trump was "bold" and seems to be a champion for protecting unborn babies, Barbara Holt said in a phone interview with McClatchy as she rode a train from North Carolina to Washington early Friday morning. Holt is president of the North Carolina Right to Life organization.
"He called out Hillary Clinton during the whole election cycle," said Holt, who's from Elon, N.C.
With Republicans in control of Congress and the White House, Holt said, she's expecting multiple victories with anti-abortion legislation. At the state level, her organization is gearing up to push the North Carolina General Assembly to restrict certain types of abortion procedures. The legislation Holt will lobby for is a type of bill commonly referred to as a "dismemberment abortion" ban.
Around the National Mall on Friday, police and security presence was light but March for Life organizers told attendees to expect "airport-like" security screenings near the rally point. Pence's late-Thursday addition to the speaker lineup likely increased security precautions.
Lewis said she expects counterprotesters, too, as anti-Trump demonstrators try to hold on to the momentum they built by amassing half a million people on the mall for the Women's March on Washington the day after the inauguration.
Lewis said she had been confronted at that march last Saturday and was spit on.
"I've never heard 'F-U' directed at me so many times," Lewis said of the experience.
Abortion rights activists were a core part of the coalition that organized the women's march and sister rallies nationwide. Some Students for Life groups reported that they were not allowed to officially join the women's march but sporadic "pro-life" signs were visible throughout the crowd.
On Friday, March for Life President Jeanne Mancini said her organization viewed itself as "pro-women."
"Pro-life is pro-woman. That voice might have been shut out last week," she said.
Like the women's march, the March for Life brings together people from around the country.
Steve Hoff, of Charlotte, N.C., brought 80 students from Charlotte Christian School. He said the 2017 March for Life was special because Trump and Pence had vowed to appoint a conservative Supreme Court justice who would overturn Roe v. Wade.
"Donald Trump is on the verge of appointing a pro-life Supreme Court justice," Hoff said. "So it is much more exciting for us to be here."
Trump hasn't been in office long but already he's made the March for Life "a little more optimistic," said Ted Hanman.
Hanman attended the event with the Benedictine College drum and flag corps. They entertained the crowd when music wasn't playing on the stage. About 200 students on five buses made a 24-hour trip from Atchison, Kan., to Washington for the March.
"It's about life, man," said Will Medina, 22, a drummer with the college group. "I feel it's a little more positive out here today."
He applauded Trump's recent executive action bringing back the "Mexico City policy," which bans foreign organizations that receive family planning aid from the United States from performing or promoting abortion. But, Medina said, "One person (Trump) isn't enough to change everything."
