Joe Bidena devout Catholic who has not always been an ardent supporter of women’s right to abortion, has taken on the role of the main proponent of this right in the US in recent days, possibly trying to take advantage of the issue to give impetus to the Democrats in view of the by-elections.
When reading a statement issued Tuesday by US President Morgan Hopkins, one of the leaders of the NGO All Above All, which defends the right of women to abortion, one thing stood out: “I think this is the first time she has used the word ‘abortion’. “In a statement, it’s important.” Hopkins welcomed Biden’s “strong response”.
Choice of words
In fact, the American president has used this word again, but very rarely, in his announcements, as he prefers to refer to “women’s right to choose” or “reproductive health”.
Hopkins’s reaction, however, is typical of the impression that the 79-year-old Democrat has made on Americans, whose view of abortion has changed significantly over the course of his long political career.
On Tuesday, he called access to abortion a “fundamental” right of Americans, calling on them to vote in the November midterm elections to defend it.
The Politico news website on Monday unveiled a draft Supreme Court opinion that is not a final decision to overturn the historic 1973 ruling recognizing Americans’ right to abortion.
However, Biden was not always in favor of access to abortion.
“Tragedy”
In 1982, when he was a senator, he had backed a legislative effort that would allow states to circumvent the 1973 decision.
Besides, for a long time o Biden was opposed to providing federal funding for abortion services and in 2006 he had stated: “I do not consider abortion an option or a right. I believe it is always a tragedy “while he had asked “Focus on tools that will help reduce abortions”.
Since then, Biden has consistently defended women’s right to vote, provoking strong reactions from the American Catholic Church. After being elected President of the United States, he removed the administrative and financial obstacles that Donald Trump’s predecessor had put in abortions.
At the same time, it intends to respond legally to any change in the attitude of the Supreme Court.
Nevertheless, activists criticize the US president for not fighting for federal legislation that would guarantee the right to abortion even in the event of a reversal of the 1973 resolution, which would have prevailed over legislation passed by many conservative states.
“There was a vote (on the issue in early March) and it failed” as Democrats did not have enough votes, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki recalled yesterday.
Beyond his personal beliefs, Biden appears to want to take advantage of the shock of Politico’s revelations to give a new impetus to the Democratic campaign in the run-up to the November midterm elections.
“Coiling”
In the by-elections, the party to which the current US president does not belong is traditionally favored, and this time it seems that the Democrats will be faced with a difficult battle. Biden’s popularity has also plummeted due to rising inflation in the United States.
Defending the right to abortion can “to rally voters around Democratic candidatesSaid Carl Tobias, a law professor at Richmond University.
Even more so as the majority of Americans are in favor of protecting the right to abortion, according to recent polls.
But in a country where the gap between supporters of the two parties is now bridging, this leak could spark the mobilization of Republicans as well.
The annulment of the constitutional right to abortion will be a historic victory for them, while it will also satisfy Trump, who has appointed three judges to the Supreme Court, consolidating his conservative turn.
“There was a silly debate among Democrats about whether they should respond to the ‘cultural war’ of Republicans. The discussion ended with this leak to the press. We have no choice but to answer “wrote Dan Pfeiffer, a former adviser to Barack Obama.
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