During the presidential debate Thursday night, former president Donald Trump clarified for the first time his position on abortion pills, saying that he supports a recent Supreme Court decision preserving access to the widely used drug.
Asked whether his position on abortion had changed in the wake of the Dobbs decision, Trump weighed in for the first time on the hot-button issue of abortion pills, endorsing the Court’s ruling that pro-life doctors lacked standing to challenge the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of the abortion pill mifepristone.
“The Supreme court just approved the abortion pill, and I agree with their decision to have done that,” Trump said. He went on to defend the overturning of Roe and argued that each state should be left to draw its own line on abortion access.
Trump’s debate comments mark the first time he’s declared a firm position on the accessibility of abortion pills. The former president said in a Time interview in late April that he would soon be issuing a statement on mifepristone, but never announced his position.
Trump said he supported exceptions for rape and life of the mother, while criticizing Democrats for supporting abortions in the eighth and ninth month of pregnancy. He referred to former Virginia governor Ralph Northam’s advocating for late-term abortions.
To counter Trump’s messaging, Biden said he supported the abortion framework established by Roe and denied supporting late-term abortions, in contrast to some members of the Democratic party.
“We are not for late term abortion. Period,” Biden asserted.