Republican political groups and anti-abortion advocates are no longer focusing on federal abortion bans on the campaign trail, and leading GOP candidates are hedging on the issue as voters increasingly shy away from strict abortion laws.
At the outset of the 2024 presidential campaign cycle, anti-abortion groups asked GOP candidates to coalesce around a 15-week, national abortion ban. Now, with the GOP primaries for the White House in full swing, it’s clear those efforts have fallen short, as the remaining Republicans realize a national ban could hurt the party in down-ballot races.
By contrast, Democrats have unified to make it their prime 2024 messaging issue. More than a year and a half after the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision, multiple polls show the majority of Americans support abortion access through at least the first trimester of pregnancy.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who supported a national 15-week ban, dropped out of the presidential race Sunday. And the two remaining GOP contenders for the White House, Donald Trump and Nikki Haley, have hesitated to endorse a national abortion ban as they try to walk the line between appealing to conservative evangelicals and winning over more moderate Republicans or independent voters. Both are previous keynote speakers at Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America’s annual gala.
Trump has flip-flopped on the issue of a national abortion ban, though he often calls himself “the most pro-life president in history” and claims credit for the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.
Speaking last year at the Faith and Freedom Coalition summit, he said there “remains a vital role for the federal government in protecting unborn life.” The campaign also ran a paid Meta ad campaign in October 2023.
But he also during the same time period told “Meet the Press” that he didn’t “frankly care” if…
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