UPDATE (Jan. 25, 2024; 9:11 a.m.): After addressing the March For Life rally on Friday, President Donald Trump signed executive orders to bar the use of federal funds for abortion coverage and to reinstate the so-called “global gag rule,” which prohibits international organizations that receive U.S. funding from providing abortion services.
After months of trying to pass himself off to voters as a moderate on abortion, President Donald Trump is leaning into his anti-abortion base once again.
Trump, who in 2020 became the first sitting president to speak at the March For Life anti-abortion rally, delivered a prerecorded speech to March for Life rallygoers on Friday, telling the crowd that he was “proud to be a participant” in the Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade. Vice President JD Vance addressed the crowd in person.
Trump’s virtual appearance at the rally came one day after he pardoned 23 anti-abortion rights activists. Ten of those pardoned were prosecuted by the Justice Department for participating in an abortion clinic blockade in Washington in 2020, The New York Times reported.
Trump began changing his rhetoric as voters signaled their support for abortion rights at the ballot box after Roe was overturned in 2022.
Trump’s embrace of his anti-abortion supporters is in stark contrast to how he yo-yoed on the issue on the campaign trail. After being staunchly anti-abortion at the start of his political career, Trump began changing his rhetoric as voters signaled their support for abortion rights at the ballot box after Roe was overturned in 2022. During the 2024 race, Trump often appeared unsure about how to publicly convey his views on abortion. In a seeming effort to win over moderate voters, he repeatedly flip-flopped on the issue and made tall declarations about how “great” his administration would be “for women and their reproductive rights,” angering his anti-abortion base. At an October town hall, Trump inexplicably claimed to be the “father of IVF,” referring to in vitro fertilization. He also said he wouldn’t sign a federal abortion ban, after earlier supporting a nationwide ban. Despite such attempts to paint himself as a moderate on abortion rights, Trump’s recent moves suggest that, now that he’s back in the White House, he’s firmly aligned with the anti-abortion camp.
Clarissa-Jan Lim is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW. She was previously a senior reporter and editor at BuzzFeed News.
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