Donald Trump Reveals His Position On Abortion

Former President Donald Trump on Monday finally revealed his position on abortion, saying it should be left up to the states to decide, after months of flip-flopping on the issue.

In a video posted on his Truth Social platform, Trump took credit for the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in June 2022, claiming he was “proudly the person responsible for the ending of something that all legal scholars, both sides wanted and in fact demanded be ended.”

“My view is now that we have abortion where everybody wanted it from a legal standpoint, 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,” he said.

Trump recognized that this would mean policies would vary across the country, with some states being more conservative than others.

“At the end of the day, this is all about the will of the people,” he said. “You must follow your heart, or in many cases, your religion or your faith. Do what’s right for your family and do what’s right for yourself. Do what’s right for your children. Do what’s right for our country.”

Still, Trump said he supports some exceptions being in place to abortion bans.

“Like Ronald Reagan, I’m strongly in favor of exceptions for rape, incest and life of the mother,” he said.

Marjorie Dannenfelser, the president of SBA Pro-Life America, a group with the mission of ending abortion in the U.S., said she was “disappointed” with Trump’s position.

“Unborn children and their mothers deserve national protections and national advocacy from the brutality of the abortion industry,” Dannenfelser said in a statement.

During his video statement, Trump, the GOP’s presumptive nominee for president, added he was in favor of in vitro fertilization treatments, following a controversial decision by Alabama’s Supreme Court which put IVF in the state in jeopardy.

“I strongly support the availability of IVF for couples who are trying to have a precious baby,” Trump said.

His announcement, however, fails to make clear how he would act if Republicans held the majority in both chambers of Congress and implemented stricter abortion restrictions across the country.

Besides, if elected, Trump is also expected to stack the executive branch with right-wing, anti-abortion judges who would likely take a hardline approach on the issue.

Meanwhile, Trump used his message to attack Democrats as the “radical ones” on the issue, falsely claiming that they support abortion up to and beyond the ninth month.

“The concept of having an abortion in the later months and even execution after birth — and that’s exactly what it is, the baby is born, the baby is executed after birth — is unacceptable and almost everyone agrees with that,” he said.

Third trimester abortions are extremely rare in the U.S. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, just 0.9% of abortions that took place in 2020 were carried out at 29 weeks or later.

The former president had teased a formal announcement on the issue of abortion over the weekend.

He had previously signaled potential support for a nationwide 15-week abortion ban.

Abortion has been a losing issue for Republicans, with many attributing the party’s underwhelming performance in the 2022 midterm elections to their extreme positions on the issue.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.