Presidential Debate Headlines, Big Week on Abortion Policy

It was a big week on abortion policy, from the courts to the presidential debate.

 

The nation’s first presidential debate last night featured President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. Sixty-seven percent of CNN’s audience said Trump was the winner.

 

While most of the debate focus has been on President Biden’s confusion and his often-muddled delivery, there were nonetheless key moments on policy, especially abortion.

 

President Biden affirmed his extreme position on abortion by standing strongly in support of Roe v. Wade. He denied that he supports late-term abortion, yet he refused to answer former President Trump’s question on what stage he would restrict abortion.

 

Meanwhile, Trump drew high marks for pressing Biden on his extremism on abortion. However, he caused major concerns from pro-lifers when he affirmed his support for the legal availability of chemical abortion drugs (which are used in approximately two-thirds of abortions nationally). He added that he would not block abortion pills (mifepristone) from being mailed to states that prohibit abortion.

 

Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Emergency Abortions

 

Also this week, the Supreme Court failed to affirm Idaho’s abortion ban, sending the decision back to a lower court. The 6-3 decision indicates that not all decisions regarding abortion will be left to individual states, leading to concerns over future legal battles.

 

Iowa Supreme Court Upholds Six-Week Abortion Ban Law

 

In good news for the pro-life movement, the Iowa Supreme Court on Friday upheld that state’s law that bans abortion after the point at which a fetal heartbeat is detectable.

 

”There is no right more sacred than life, and nothing more worthy of our strongest defense than the innocent unborn,” Iowa Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds said in a statement released Friday morning.

 

“Iowa voters have spoken clearly through their elected representatives, both in 2018 when the original heartbeat bill was passed and signed into law, and again in 2023 when it passed by an even larger margin. I’m glad that the Iowa Supreme Court has upheld the will of the people of Iowa,” she added.