Vice President Kamala Harris visited an abortion clinic in mid-March, signaling that the Biden – Harris campaign intends to bring the issue front and center for the November White House battle. It is the first time in American history that a President or Vice President has visited a facility where abortions are performed.
Speaking at a Planned Parenthood clinic in St. Paul, Minnesota, Ms. Harris said the United States is facing a “very serious crisis” that is affecting many Americans and leaving them to “silently suffer.” Dr. Sarah Traxler, who describes herself as a “proud abortion provider,” joined the Vice President for the “historic” stopover and said that the number visiting her facility from other states had doubled since the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade in 2022.
During Harris’s visit, protesters gathered outside holding up signs stating, “life is a human right” and “abortion kills a human being.”
President Biden addressed abortion in his recent State of the Union address and claimed that Republicans will enact a nationwide ban if they win Congressional control and the White House this year. He promised to veto any such proposals from Congress if he remains in the Oval Office. Observers noted, however, that Biden avoided using the word “abortion,” which some commentators suggested indicates some unease on the President’s part.
Nevertheless, abortion has proven to be an election booster for Democrats since 2022. For example, in Virginia last year, they won control of both state legislative chambers following campaigns that fiercely opposed GOP Governor Glenn Youngkin’s proposed 15-week abortion ban. In Trump-voting Ohio, electors approved an amendment to the state constitution to guarantee abortion rights. Similarly, Kansas voters rejected proposals to remove abortion protections from its state constitution.
GOP Presidential candidate Donald Trump has noted the trend and warned Republicans against taking “extreme” positions as this could spell doom for their electoral chances. Trump advised GOP candidates to support three exceptions – rape, incest, and the protection of the mother’s life.