Press Release National
Press Release
Reproductive Freedom for All Responds to First Presidential Debate
Washington, DC – Tonight, during the first presidential debate, President Biden once again voiced his commitment to advancing reproductive freedom, including abortion rights and access— while Donald Trump continued bragging about his role in ending Roe v. Wade and pushing disinformation.
Reproductive Freedom for All President and CEO Mini Timmaraju released the following statement in response:
“Donald Trump has shown us exactly who he is and what he is capable of. There should be no doubt in anyone’s mind that, if given the chance, he will sign a national abortion ban into law. President Biden affirmed that he would restore the federal right to abortion and protect reproductive freedom if reelected. The contrast could not be more clear. We must send him and Vice President Harris back to the White House so they can work with Congress to restore federal protections for abortion and expand access nationwide.”
We know what Trump has done, and what he will continue to do because it’s been well documented in his playbook for his second term: Project 2025. Anti-abortion groups—who teamed up with Trump during his last administration to overturn Roe and decimate reproductive freedom—have partnered with other conservatives to create a lengthy agenda that he could begin launching on Day One of his administration, with or without the courts or Congress.
Trump’s record during his time in office speaks for itself:
- Stacked the federal judiciary with conservative ideologues and built the anti-abortion supermajority on the Supreme Court that overturned Roe v. Wade and ended the federal right to abortion.
- Installed anti-abortion extremists in key leadership roles throughout his administration, including Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley, former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, former Health and Human Services Secretaries Tom Price and Alex Azar, and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
- Put the harmful domestic gag rule in place. This anti-abortion policy decimated the Title X family planning network by forcing many health care providers out of the program who—in addition to other services—provided abortion care. The restriction also prohibited Title X providers from referring for abortion care.
- Reinstated and expanded the anti-abortion global gag rule. Though previous Republican presidents have applied the policy, the Trump administration’s version greatly expanded it to apply to organizations receiving any U.S. global health assistance.
- Voiced that people who seek abortion care should be subject to “some sort of punishment.”
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For over 50 years, NARAL Pro-Choice America has fought to protect and advance reproductive freedom at the federal and state levels—including access to abortion care, birth control, pregnancy and post-partum care, and paid family leave—for everybody. NARAL is powered by its 4 million members from every state and congressional district in the country, representing the 8 in 10 Americans who support legal abortion.