Sinta Jimenez welcomes Haile McAnally to The Pro-Life American Podcast. Haile traveled from Nebraska to Washington, D.C. to share her experience with lawmakers and to speak about the risks women should understand when it comes to abortion drugs.

Haile describes growing up in a Christian household in Nebraska and dating someone she thought she would marry. At 19 she told him she was pregnant. He asked what she was going to do about it and hung up, and she has not talked to him since. She says she was not aware pregnancy centers existed, was not comfortable going to church, and remembers the pink Planned Parenthood signs that made it feel like sisterhood.

At Planned Parenthood she was ushered into a room with a doctor on a screen, not in person, and a nurse beside her with consent forms. No physical review was done. She was told she would take one abortion drug in the clinic and one at home, with some discomfort, cramping, and bleeding. She did not look at the ultrasound. At home, alone, she began heavily bleeding, grew weak, could not reach her phone, and thought that was how her story would end. A friend found her and called 911. She woke up in the hospital and needed a blood transfusion.

She talks about the depression that followed, wanting to stay silent, and later finding compassion, forgiveness, and a voice in church communities rather than the sisterhood the pink signs had promised. She ran for the Nebraska state legislature in 2021. In 2023 she testified for the first time, on a six-week bill brought by state senator Joni Albright, after being escorted through a hostile crowd at the Capitol.

Asked what she wishes she had known, Haile says there is hope, and that women can message her or someone at Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America for resources. In Washington she calls on lawmakers to stop mail-order abortion drugs, saying a woman needs to go into a clinic and see a medical professional, and that the first step has to be the safety of women. Sinta notes that Senator Bernie Moreno released a letter asking for the end of mail-order abortion drugs.

Sinta Jimenez, Director of Digital Strategy for SBA Pro-Life America, sits down in Iowa with Austin Stubbs, Iowa campaign manager, on The Pro-Life American Podcast.

Austin talks about what it will take to get Republicans to come out and vote party line in the midterms: making sure voters know this is an essential and consequential election, that it is not one to take off, and that people show up and make their voice heard on November 3rd.

They also cover friction points in mobilizing the base, including frustration over cost of living, affordability, and foreign policy, and the need to stay connected on core values that differ from the other party and the other candidates on the ballot.

Cinta asks whether Iowans know that abortions are up in America and whether they are aware of the abortion drug crisis. Austin says a large percent, probably a majority, still think abortions are on the decline because of Iowa's legislation and policies. He says that is not the case, that the abortion industry pivoted, and that 60% is done via abortion drugs.

Out in the counties, Austin describes shock when Iowans hear about mail-order abortion drugs, coercion, abortion drugs slipped into food or water, and human remains found in the water filtration system. He says another astonished reaction comes when people hear that 10 states plus DC have no limits on abortion, and that the United States is one of six or seven countries in the world, including communist China, to allow this.

This week we go straight to the heartland. SBA Pro-Life America's Iowa campaign manager Austin Stubbs sits down on-site with Bob Vander Plaats, president and CEO of The Family Leader, for a conversation about how Iowa's faith-driven pro-life movement wins political victories.

Bob shares the personal story behind his commitment to life — his son Lucas, born with severe disabilities and given days to live, who "delivered the greatest sermon without ever saying a word" over 28 years. From there, the two dig into why abortions have climbed past 1.1 million a year even after Roe v. Wade was overturned, and how mail-order abortion drugs that "don't know a zip code" are defying state protections like Iowa's heartbeat law. Bob lays out the common-sense safeguards every leader should support: doctor-prescribed only, full disclosure of complications, reversal offered alongside abortion drugs, and respect for state laws.

They also cover the 2026 midterms — including SBA's endorsement of Zach Lahn for governor and the stark contrast with Rob Sand, who says life begins at "first breath" — plus Ashley Hinson, Zach Nunn, and why turnout is everything in a tough year. Bob explains The Family Leader's Church-State Partnership, why Iowa's caucus role matters for picking a true pro-life president in 2028, the case for national minimum protections, defunding Planned Parenthood, and how the church can come alongside women facing crisis pregnancies and those healing after abortion.

Chapters

• 00:00 – Intro: On-Site in Iowa with Austin Stubbs and Bob Vander Plaats
• 00:50 – How Bob Became Pro-Life: Darla, Sioux City, and Lucas
• 02:38 – Life as The Family Leader's Cornerstone
• 03:31 – Why Abortions Rose After Roe: Mail-Order Abortion Drugs
• 05:41 – Fighting Abortion Drugs with Common-Sense Safeguards
• 08:24 – Zach Lahn vs. Rob Sand: A Stark Contrast for Governor
• 09:43 – 2026 Races, Headwinds, and Turnout
• 11:46 – The Church-State Partnership
• 13:46 – Looking to 2028: Iowa's Caucus and Federal Limits
• 17:00 – Abortion Drugs Crossing State Lines
• 18:31 – One State Away from Minnesota: Abortion on Demand
• 19:40 – Defunding Planned Parenthood
• 20:58 – Hope for the Grassroots: Take the Win
• 22:05 – Supporting Women and Post-Abortion Healing
• 23:27 – Closing: Iowa Sets the Tone for 2026 and 2028
• 25:10 – Wrap-Up and Outro

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