Newman had the backing of pro-abortion groups such as NARAL and Planned Parenthood, and was supported by progressive Democrats including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.).
Lipinski, meanwhile, received no vocal support from House Democratic leadership, despite being the incumbent in the race.
The abortion lobby poured money into primary challenges against Lipinski in 2018 and again in 2020; He told CNA that around $3 million total was spent against him in each cycle. NARAL teamed up with other liberal groups to invest $1.4 million in the final weeks of the 2020 race, running ads targeting Lipinski's pro-life record among other issues.
The Congressman said that the headwinds he faced from the abortion lobby revealed the level of their concern to silence a pro-life Democratic voice.
"They found it very important to get rid of me from the party, so I think that should be a message to the pro-life movement," he said.
"The pro-life movement needs to support pro-life Democrats."
As one of the last remaining pro-life Democrats in Congress, Lipinski said that the future of the pro-life movement must be bipartisan-and this means accepting people who might share different views on other issues such as the economy or the environment.
Any successful coalition, he said, makes room for different views on the spectrum of issues as long as members support the key issue, which in this case is the life issue.
"That's when you're successful, is when you say 'as long as you're with us on this issue, we accept you, we want you as part of our movement.' I think that's important for the pro-life movement to continue to expand."
While needing to promote a "third way" of dealing with politics, Catholics need also to be concerned about those young people who are leaving religion altogether, he said-a phenomenon described as the rise of the "Nones."
Last year, the Pew Research Center reported that fewer than half of Millennials (49%) now identify as Christian, and four-in-ten are unaffiliated with any religion.
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The current crisis is also a golden opportunity, he said, as the pandemic is forcing people to grapple with their beliefs on life and death.
"I want to be someone who reaches out-especially to young people, whether they are raised Catholic or not-to try to draw them in to the Catholic Church, introduce them to what Catholics believe and understand, and our faith," Lipinski said.
"And that's something that I want to continue to do, especially as I leave Congress and move on."
Matt Hadro was the political editor at Catholic News Agency through October 2021. He previously worked as CNA senior D.C. correspondent and as a press secretary for U.S. Congressman Chris Smith.