On Tuesday night, September 10th, the US Democratic presidential candidate and Vice President, Kamala Harris, and the Republican presidential candidate and former President, Donald Trump, participated in a televised election debate at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. One of the key issues discussed was abortion and reproductive rights.
Kamala Harris stated that after the Roe v. Wade decision was overturned by the Supreme Court, the Biden administration took on a leadership role in advocating for abortion rights. She criticized the Hyde Amendment, previously supported by Biden, which she believes prevented federal funds from being used for most abortion procedures. She also condemned the Trump administration’s abortion ban, stating that “Trump should not dictate women’s bodies.”
Harris emphasized that abortion is a fundamental right for women, and she supports legislation to restore the federal abortion rights established in the Roe v. Wade decision. She mentioned that if Congress passes a bill compiling the Roe v. Wade decision into law, she would sign it into law.
In response, Trump called this another “lie” manufactured by Harris. He said, “This is an issue that is dividing our nation.” He reiterated that abortion rights are a matter for individual states to decide, stating, “I have done something that nobody thought was possible. Now, the states are voting.”
He also praised the six Supreme Court justices who voted to overturn Roe v. Wade and the federal abortion rights ruling, mentioning their “genius, dedication, and strength.”
Of these six justices, three were nominated by him during his previous term.
When asked what he would do if a nationwide abortion ban was presented to him, Trump replied, “I would not sign it, there’s no reason to sign it because we already have what everyone wants.”
Trump was asked to clarify his recent statement regarding a proposal in Florida to establish a constitutional right to abortion. He stated that he does not support the proposal because it allows for “abortion in the ninth month,” which he deemed as “too extreme.”
Trump claimed that the Democrats want to allow women to have abortions at nine months pregnant, to which Harris countered that no woman wants to have an abortion at that stage of pregnancy.
The Roe v. Wade decision is a milestone in American civil rights history. In 1973, the US Supreme Court’s ruling affirmed the constitutional right to abortion, protected under the right to privacy.
At that time, the majority of Supreme Court justices believed that pregnant women have an absolute constitutional right to abortion within the first three months of pregnancy. States have since amended or enacted laws based on this ruling, but there have been varying interpretations and restrictions on abortion rights.
This decision remains highly controversial to this day, with anti-abortion groups working to overturn it while abortion rights advocates staunchly defend it.
On June 24, 2022, the conservative-leaning US Supreme Court overturned the legalization of abortion made in the Roe v. Wade decision of 1973, with a 6-3 vote.