Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Feb. 24, 2024, in National Harbor, Maryland. Trump said Thursday he would debate Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris on Sept. 10. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
After criticizing Florida’s six-week abortion ban on Thursday, former President Donald Trump, a resident of the Sunshine State, told Fox News that he will be voting against a ballot measure to protect and expand abortion rights.
“I disagreed with that right from the early primaries when I heard about it,” Trump said Friday of the state’s six-week ban. “I disagreed with it.”
Trump then made additional comments centering on an untrue point about abortions, arguing that some states allow for abortions after birth. There is no such thing as abortion after birth, and no state law allows for it. The Florida measure would allow for restrictions after fetal viability, which occurs typically between 23 and 25 weeks of pregnancy.
The Florida measure would amend the state’s constitution to protect abortion rights until viability — the same standard as Roe v. Wade — and would as a result overturn the state’s active six-week ban. The measure requires 60 percent voter approval to pass.
During an interview on Thursday, Trump said the six-week ban offered too little time — leading some to believe he might vote in favor of the abortion rights measure, though his campaign quickly said otherwise. He also said he would require the government or insurance companies to pay for IVF treatment, though he did not say how. These remarks incensed some anti-abortion leaders, who have been his staunch allies since his first presidential campaign in 2016. This year, as the GOP presidential nominee, Trump has sought to soften his stance on abortion — taking credit for the overturn of Roe, but declining to endorse a national ban on the procedure.
Most women voters still disapprove of Trump’s favored position, which is to leave abortion policy up to states. Instead, they support a national abortion rights protection, per polling from the nonprofit health policy research and journalism organization KFF.
The Republican Party endorsed a platform at its national convention that would interpret the U.S. Constitution’s 14th amendment to grant embryos the same legal status as people — an anti-abortion ideology known as “fetal personhood,” which could be used to ban abortion and other reproductive health services like in vitro fertilization. Trump’s campaign website links to the party platform.
Trump’s new IVF pledge would require congressional approval, which is unlikely, and would run against the position of many in his own party. All but two Senate Republicans voted against a Democrat-backed bill in June meant to protect access to the treatment.
Some evangelical leaders and abortion opponents have said they will not be endorsing Trump because of his recent efforts to distance himself from the movement. Meanwhile, other prominent anti-abortion activists, such as Students for Life leader Kristan Hawkins, have argued they stand a better chance of restricting abortion under a Trump administration than one led by Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee.
Trump’s latest comments drew praise from abortion opponents.
“We thank President Trump for shedding light on how extreme this measure is and call on all Republican leaders in Florida to follow the president’s example,” said Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of SBA Pro-Life America.
In a series of posts on the social media website X, Hawkins suggested Trump’s announcement shows abortion opponents will have better luck influencing a Republican White House.
“The last 24 hours the pro-life movement united calling on President Trump to do the right thing,” she posted, then inaccurately describing the Florida measure as one that would protect abortion in all trimesters. “It worked. He listened. He’s voting NO.”
Harris issued a statement shortly after the news about Trump’s “no” vote broke on Friday.
“Donald Trump just made his position on abortion very clear: He will vote to uphold an abortion ban so extreme it applies before many women even know they are pregnant,” she said. “Trump proudly brags about the role that he played in overturning Roe v. Wade and said there should be punishment for women who have an abortion.”
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