Murray: Western Decline Begins with Abandoning Family and Faith

During a segment of The Ingraham Angle on Monday night, host Laura Ingraham tackled what she described as “one of America’s quiet but growing crises”: the nation’s steadily declining birthrate. The discussion was prompted in part by a clip of President Donald Trump jokingly referring to himself as the “Fertilization President.”

“I’ll be known as the Fertilization President, and that’s okay… I’ve been called much worse. Actually, I like it,” Trump said in remarks from a separate event.

The U.S. fertility rate has dropped well below the replacement level of 2.1 children per woman, settling at 1.6 in recent years — a trend mirrored across much of the Western world.

“The biggest issue in 20 years will be population collapse. Not explosion — collapse,” tech entrepreneur Elon Musk has warned repeatedly.

Murray: “An Anti-Human Attitude Is Taking Root”

To explore the cultural and ideological roots of this decline, Ingraham welcomed British author and Fox News contributor Douglas Murray, whose latest book examines the unraveling of Western democratic societies.

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Murray argued that the falling birthrate is not simply the result of economic factors or changing social habits, but rather a reflection of a deeper ideological rot — a rising belief that human life is more harmful than meaningful.

“There’s an anti-human attitude which has been pumped into our societies in recent years,” Murray said. “The Green movement tells young people they’re the problem — that just by being born, they’re destroying the planet.”

This kind of thinking, he warned, has instilled fear and guilt around parenthood in younger generations. As a result, Western societies are increasingly relying on mass immigration to offset labor shortages and fund entitlement programs.

“You end up having to do things like importing foreign workers to help the pensions pyramid,” Murray noted. “Italy, for example, used to have a great tradition of making children — and enjoying it.”

Ingraham echoed the concern, calling big families a “blessing,” and encouraging her staff to embrace family life rooted in faith and joy — not fear or ideology.

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Delayed Marriage and the Cult of Credentials

The segment also addressed the trend of delayed marriage. Today, the average age of first marriage in the United States is 30 for men and 28 for women — a significant increase from previous decades.

Murray acknowledged that longer life spans have changed cultural timelines, but warned that delaying family formation too long brings emotional and biological consequences.

“You can start things later, but don’t leave them too late,” he said. “Telling women they can wait until their 40s or 50s to have kids is a lie — and it leads to a lot of unhappiness.”

He also criticized the growing pressure on young people to pursue endless degrees and professional accolades, often at the expense of marriage and parenthood.

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“A lot of Americans were told to get their third postgraduate degree before starting work in their 30s — and marry in their 50s. That’s a terrible idea,” Murray added.

A Civilization Worth Defending

Murray closed the segment by previewing his new book, which features his on-the-ground reporting from Israel after the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attacks. The book challenges Western elites’ growing sympathy for radical ideologies and questions why democracies like Israel are increasingly vilified.

But on the issue of demographic decline, Murray offered a clear message: unless Western societies return to a pro-family, pro-human ethic, they will face irreversible cultural and civilizational decline.

“A pro-family worldview isn’t just a cultural choice,” he said. “It’s the foundation of a thriving civilization.”

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