Former President Trump said he would provide a comment on abortion on Monday morning, following a Florida court verdict that raised concerns about whether he supports the state’s impending ban on the procedure after six weeks of pregnancy.
“Republicans, and all others, must follow their hearts and minds, but remember that, like Ronald Reagan before me, I, and most other Republicans, believe in EXCEPTIONS for Rape, Incest, and Life of the Mother,” Trump said on Twitter.
“When even thinking about the subject of LIFE, we must show great love and compassion, but we must also use common sense to recognize that we have an obligation to the salvation of our nation, which is currently in serious DECLINE, to WIN ELECTIONS, without which we will have nothing but failure, death, and destruction. “We will not let that happen,” he said.
Trump, the likely Republican presidential nominee, has frequently skirted questions about whether he would sign a national abortion ban if reelected, asserting instead that he would find a way to bring the country together on an exceedingly controversial topic.
At the same time, Trump has often claimed responsibility for overturning Roe v. Wade by appointing three conservative Supreme Court judges. He has blamed GOP abortion messaging for election losses since the momentous decision was overturned in June 2022.
His stance on the topic was brought back to the forefront after a Florida court decision upheld the state’s 15-week abortion restriction. The verdict also allowed for a separate six-week ban, which will go into force on May 1, prohibiting abortion at a stage of gestation before many women are aware they are pregnant.
Last September, Trump blasted the six-week ban as a “terrible mistake,” infuriating some evangelicals and activists who have advocated for strict abortion limits.
Abortion has been a major motivator for Democratic voters in the nearly two years since the Supreme Court decision overturned the federal right to abortion access, and Biden and his campaign have used it as a rallying cry as they prepare for the November general election against former President Trump.
“There isn’t a comment Donald Trump can make that changes the facts; he brags about overturning Roe, claims that there would be no abortion prohibitions without him, and is accountable for the hellscape women live in today. These are his words. “It’s all on tape,” Biden campaign spokesman Ammar Moussa said Sunday, in response to Trump’s expected statement.