In a Truth Social morning post, former President Donald Trump backed families trying for the “ultimate joy of life” by having a baby using IVF and stressing it’s up to the states to decide on abortion.
This ends talk of a national abortion ban if he wins re-election, but still gives him distance from President Joe Biden’s push for “reproductive freedom.”
Trump backed the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark Roe vs. Wade decision in 2022 ending the constitutional right to abortion, praising the conservative justices who “ended it.”
Trump also said he supports exceptions to abortion bans in cases of incest, rape and when a mother’s life is in danger.
“The states will determine by vote, or legislation, or perhaps both, and whatever they decide must be the law of the land – in this case, the law of the state,” Trump said in his video post. “At the end of the day, this must be about the will of the people.”
He also firmly backed in vitro fertilization (IVF).
“The Republican Party should always be on the side of the miracle of life and the side of mothers, fathers and their beautiful babies. IVF is an important part of that,” Trump said.
Trump’s statements, where he also slams late-term abortions, solidifies his political stance on one of the most contentious topics in the 2024 election.
In a direct knock at hardline GOP colleagues, he added: “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 Biden campaign was quick to hit back today.
“Donald Trump made it clear once again today that he is – more than anyone in America – the person responsible for ending Roe v. Wade,” Biden’s camp wrote in an email blast. “He is – more than anyone in America – responsible for creating the cruelty and the chaos that has enveloped America since the Dobbs decision.”
In the Bay State, Gov. Maura Healey echoed the Democratic party platform and added the local fallout from the Supreme Court’s ruling.
“In Massachusetts, we are still seeing the impact of Donald Trump’s actions. More women than ever are coming to our state for reproductive care, straining providers and threatening access to essential health care,” Healey said in a statement. “Massachusetts is a beacon of reproductive freedom, and I will work every day to make sure abortion remains safe and legal. But one thing is clear – Donald Trump is a threat to the rights and health care of women in Massachusetts and across the country.”
This is a developing story …
