Former President Donald Trump unveiled support for abortion access to be determined by each state in a Monday morning Truth Social post.
“Many people have asked me what my position is on abortion and abortion rights – especially since I was proudly the person responsible for the ending of something that all legal scholars [on] both sides wanted and, in fact, demanded be ended: Roe v. Wade,” he said in a video statement. “They wanted it ended.”
Trump said Democrats are “radicals” on this issue who “support abortion up to and even beyond the ninth month” – a claim that has been disputed, sometimes vaguely, by members of the Democratic party.
“The concept of having an abortion in the later months, and even execution after birth – and that’s exactly what it is: the baby is born, the baby is executed after birth – is unacceptable, and almost everyone agrees with that,” he continued.
“My view is now that we have abortion where everybody wanted it from a legal standpoint, the states will determine by vote or legislation or perhaps both,” Trump said. “And whatever they decide must be the law of the land and, in this case, the law of the state.”
The former president acknowledged that states will differ in regard to laws regulating abortion access.
“Many will have a different number of weeks or some will have more conservative [laws] than others and that’s what they will be,” Trump said. “At the end of the day, this is all about the will of the people. You must follow your heart, or in many cases, your religion or your faith. Do what’s right for your family and do what’s right for yourself, do what’s right for your children, do what’s right for our country and vote. So important to vote.”
“At the end of the day, it’s all about will of the people,” he added. “That’s where we are right now and that’s what we want: will of the people.” 🚨 Trump releases statement on abortion
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) April 8, 2024
Axios reports that the former president has “repeatedly dodged questions on the politically charged issue” of abortion. According to POLITICO, the announcement “is likely to disappoint anti-abortion groups who hoped he would use his bully pulpit to endorse national restrictions on abortion, especially after his campaign floated a 15-week ban earlier this year.”
In a 2023 interview with The National Pulse, Trump described the issue as “amazing … beautiful [and] complex.”
“But, in all of this, whether we like it or not, you still have to be able to win an election,” he said at the time.
A March report from Fox News found that 59 percent of constituents think abortion should be legal in all or most cases – “up from the previous high of 57% in September 2022 and a record low of 44% in April 2022.”
“Support for legalization is up (mostly by double-digits) across the board since April 2022, two months before Roe was overturned,” the outlet said. “That includes increased support among voters ages 65 and older (+16 points should be legal), conservatives (+12), Republicans (+11), and White evangelical Christians (+10).”
In his video statement, Trump said his beliefs align with Ronald Reagan's perspective on the matter.
“I am strongly in favor of exceptions for rape, incest and life of the mother,” he said. “You must follow your heart on this issue but remember: you must also win elections to restore our culture and, in fact, to save our country, which is currently, and very sadly, a nation in decline.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that in 2021 the data for abortions was similar to previous years: over 93 percent of abortions were performed at or before 13 weeks’ gestation, 5.7 percent were performed at 14-20 weeks’ gestation, and just under 1 percent were performed at 21 weeks' gestation.
Though the data would suggest “late-term” abortions are extremely rare, critics of abortion have cited 2019 comments from former Virginia Governor Ralph Northam, who supported a state measure that would significantly roll back restrictions on the procedure.
“[Third trimester abortions are] done in cases where there may be severe deformities. There may be a fetus that’s nonviable. So in this particular example, if a mother is in labor, I can tell you exactly what would happen,” said Northam, a pediatric neurosurgeon, per CNN. “The infant would be delivered. The infant would be kept comfortable. The infant would be resuscitated if that’s what the mother and the family desired. And then a discussion would ensue between the physicians and the mother.”
Trump also voiced his support for in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment in his Monday announcement.
“Under my leadership, the Republican party will always support the creation of strong, thriving and healthy American families,” he said. “We want to make it easier for mothers and families to have babies – not harder. That includes supporting the availability of fertility treatments like IVF in every state in America.”
