On Sunday, a new commercial for Joe Biden’s re-election was released, marking a change in the campaign’s focus to reproductive rights.
The White House sees this pivot in emphasis on reproductive rights as a way to define and carry Democrats into a winning 2024 presidential race.
Titled “Forced,” the political advertisement seeks to tie Donald Trump with an unfavorable abortion debate outcome. It’s been nearly one year after his judicial appointees contributed to the overturning of a constitutional right to abortion guaranteed by Roe v. Wade, a landmark decision that would have celebrated its 51st anniversary this week.
In the ad, a Texas obstetrician and mother of three, Dr. Austin Dennard, describes her ordeal as every woman’s worst nightmare as she narrates the story of leaving her home state to terminate her pregnancy after finding her unborn child had a deadly illness.
She blamed the action of Donald Trump for taking away her choice in Texas, citing the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
This weekend, anti-abortion protestors flocked to Washington DC, coinciding with the ad’s debut. The March for Life is an annual event where tens of thousands of people peacefully rally and march to oppose abortion. Another gathering was the National Pro-Life Summit.
Although Biden feels the historic 1973 decision “got it right,” he has stated that he is not “big on” reproductive rights (aka abortion) due to his Catholic beliefs; as a result, the government is foisting the issue upon Vice President Kamala Harris.
Harris will begin a cross-country trip on Monday to highlight the Obama administration’s work to safeguard women’s reproductive autonomy. The first stop on her journey will be Wisconsin, the state where the Democrats won a crucial high court election thanks to abortion rights.
The Democrats’ campaign platform this year centers on the idea that further personal health restrictions will be enacted under a second Trump presidency.
Julie Chavez Rodriguez, the campaign manager for Biden and Harris in 2024, said that if they were to regain the presidency, he and the MAGA Republicans would go even farther.
