Former Vice President Mike Pence is attacking his two-time running mate over his long-awaited announcement on abortion.
Pence on Monday denounced former President Trump’s decision not to support the federal abortion ban as a “backsliding on the right to life” and a “slap in the face to millions of pro-life Americans.”
The former vice president’s statement comes hours after President Trump took credit for the Supreme Court’s conservative majority’s two-year-old decision overturning the landmark Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion nationwide. Announced.
But President Trump has refused to support efforts by social conservatives to ban abortion at the federal level, and has refused to allow states to set their own abortion laws, as long as there are exceptions for rape, incest, and the life of the mother. He emphasized his support.
What President Trump said in his long-awaited abortion announcement
“Each state will decide either by vote or by law or both, and whatever a state decides must be the law of the land, in this case the law of the state,” Trump said in a video posted to social media. ” he said. “Many states will be different. Many states will have a different number of weeks…At the end of the day, it all comes down to the will of the people.”
What top Republicans are saying about Trump’s abortion announcement
Mr. Pence, a longtime advocate for evangelical voters, joined a group of about a dozen Republican candidates running for the Republican presidential nomination last year to advocate for a federal ban on abortion.
in statement “President Trump’s right-to-life rollback is a slap in the face to the millions of pro-life Americans who voted for President Trump in 2016 and 2020,” Pence said on social media. By upholding recognition, the Trump-Pence administration has consigned Roe v. Wade to the ashes of history and given the pro-life movement an opportunity to compassionately support women and the unborn child.”
Former Vice President Mike Pence speaks to guests at the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition Spring Kickoff on April 22, 2023 in Clive, Iowa. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
The former vice president lamented that “too many Republican politicians are ready to back down from the fight of their lives.”
“No matter how much the Republican candidate or any other candidate tries to trivialize the cause of life, we will remain pro-life until we see the sanctity of life restored to the center of American law in every state in this country.” I know that these Americans will never relent.” . ”
Asked to respond to Pence’s criticism, Trump campaign spokesman Steve Chiang replied, “Who?”
Pence was not the only prominent Republican to criticize the former president.
Powerful anti-abortion groups were also not happy with President Trump’s announcement.
Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life, said she was “deeply disappointed” by President Trump’s announcement on Monday, calling it a victory for Democrats.
“By calling the issue ‘back to the states,’ you are ceding the national debate to Democrats,” Dannenfelser said. “I’m here,” he emphasized. “If successful, states’ rights will be wiped out.”
After the reversal of Roe v. Wade, state supreme courts will become key battlegrounds in the battle over abortion rights. (AP Photo/Matt York, File)
A blockbuster Supreme Court ruling nearly two years ago not only pushed divisive issues back to the states, but also left them to be dealt with almost entirely by “pro-life” parties, giving Republicans enough power in elections across the country. I was forced to take a defensive stance. Voters in which a majority of Americans support at least some form of abortion access.
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In response to the Supreme Court’s action, Republican-controlled states have introduced new restrictions on abortion, including Florida’s six-week ban.
The former president is trying to thread the needle on abortion as Democrats target President Trump and other Republicans over divisive issues.
As he did on Monday, Trump regularly praises on the campaign trail his appointment of Supreme Court justices who voted to overturn Roe v. Wade, calling himself “the most pro-life president in American history.” It is advertised as being.
But he also repeatedly criticized Republicans for taking hard-line positions on the issue, saying the party’s setbacks on the issue are due to its failure to make exceptions in cases of rape, incest, and cases where the mother’s life is at risk. They are criticizing the candidates who have done so. 2022 Midterm Elections.
While campaigning for the White House, Pence repeatedly emphasized that “I am pro-life and I make no apologies for that.”
And in August, he told reporters in Iowa: “I reject the idea that defending the sanctity of life is a political loser.”
A month later, after President Trump refused to support Florida’s controversial six-week abortion ban, Pence said in a Fox News interview that the former president had “left the anti-abortion cause behind.” “We’ve gone backwards,” he said.
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