Where the Candidates Stand: Reproductive Rights

Donald Trump

Trump has shifted his views on this issues over the years. Once proclaimed pro-choice, he now supports the pro-life agenda. His adminstration has aggressively moved to eliminate funding for all Planned Parenthood services via new Title X restrictions, disproportionately affecting poor communities. (Note: the Hyde Amendment already barred the use of federal funds for abortion except to save the life of the women). Trump ran in 2016 with a promise to nominate Supreme Court Justices that he believed would overturn Roe v. Wade. He has appointed two Surpeme Court justices and hundreds of judges to lower courts in his first term.

Joe Biden

Biden is pro-choice and pledges that his federal court nominees would “support the right of privacy, on which the entire notion of a woman’s right to choose is based.” Joe Biden’s “Agenda for Women” includes:

• Working to codify Roe v. Wade.

• Supporting the repeal of the Hyde Amendment.

• Reducing our unacceptably high maternal mortality rate, which disproportionately affects women of color. 

• Restoring federal funding for Planned Parenthood, including through Medicaid and Title X.