Jennifer Cartwright
Donald Trump’s wife Melania Trump has publicly expressed support for abortion rights, in a departure from her husband’s views.
Melania Trump has expressed her support for women’s abortion rights, differing from her husband Donald Trump’s view.
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In a social media video uploaded to promote her upcoming memoir Melania, the former first lady described abortion as “an essential right that all women possess from birth” and that “there is no room for compromise” on this issue.
“Donald Trump said last year that he was “proud to be the most pro-life president in American history”
Her opinion counters her Republican presidential nominee husband, who has previously proudly described himself as the president who “was able to kill Roe v. Wade.”
ROE V. WADE OVERTURNED
Roe v. Wade was a 1973 landmark Supreme Court ruling that protected a woman’s right to an abortion under the US Constitution.
In 2022, Supreme Court justices voted 5-4 to overturn the ruling, removing federal protection over abortion rights.
Three of the justices who helped overturn Roe, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett, were all appointed by Trump during his time as president in 2016-2021.
Since the overturning of Roe v. Wade, abortion is illegal in 13 US States.
ABORTION AND THE 2024 ELECTION
With growing consequences of Roe v. Wade’s upheaval, abortion has been a key issue in the upcoming US election.
In a debate against Donald Trump on 10th September, Democrat Presidential nominee Kamala Harris said “the majority of Americans believe in a woman’s right to make decisions about her own body.”
Meanwhile, Donald Trump, who last year said he was “proud to be the most pro-life president in American history”, refused to answer if he would veto a national abortion ban if it came to his desk.
“Six in 10 Americans believe their state should permit abortion for any reason”
Trump appears to be taking a more equivocal approach to the topic compared to his previous presidential campaigns in 2016 and 2020 by repeatedly deferring the topic as a state rather than a federal issue. At a recent rally, Trump even described himself as a “protector” of women but defended that abortion jurisdiction belongs in the states.
Abortion has been equally contentious between Vice-President nominees J.D. Vance and Tim Walz.
In the Vice-Presidential debate on 2nd October, Walz described abortion as a “basic human right” while Vance said it “makes most sense” to “let individual states make their abortion policy.”
WHAT DOES MELANIA TRUMP THINK ABOUT ABORTION?
Though abortion policy has been a recurring topic throughout Donald Trump’s political career, Melania Trump has generally remained quiet on the issue.
However, while promoting her memoir, the former First Lady claimed that her belief that it is an “individual freedom” has been held for a long time.
In an interview for Fox News, she reiterated her stance on abortion saying “I want to decide what to do with my body” and that her husband has known her stance since “the day we met.”
Donald Trump meanwhile said that when his wife was writing the book he advised her “you have to write what you believe.”
WHAT DOES MELANIA TRUMP’S STATEMENT ON ABORTION MEAN?
It is highly unusual for a presidential hopeful’s spouse to openly share ideological differences.
Former first wives Nancy Reagan, Barbara Bush and Laura Bush, all waited until their husbands left the White House for good before vocalising their support for abortion rights.
Considering an estimated six in 10 Americans believe their state should permit abortion for any reason, perhaps Melania voicing her opinion one month before the election is an effort to appeal to voters who feel misrepresented by the traditionally tough Republican stance on the issue.
Or perhaps, this is Melania making her own choice regardless of the possible election impact. It should be noted that throughout Trump’s 2024 campaign, Melania has been absent from many key campaign events including when he formally gained the Republican nomination.
WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR ABOUT MELANIA’S MEMOIR
In a CNN Interview in 2020, author of Melania Trump biography The Art of Her Deal, Mary Jordan argued that Melania’s “brand is to be mysterious”. Jordan’s account of the Slovenian-American model’s life was based on over 100 interviews but only brief direct contact with Melania Trump herself.
“Melania’s new memoir will open up about her experiences of nude modelling and cancel culture”
Melania is therefore going to be a rare glimpse into the opinions and beliefs of the elusive former first lady in her own words.
On Melania’s website, the new memoir is described as “an intimate portrait of a woman who has lived an extraordinary life.” Social media promotion suggests that as well as abortion, in the book Melania Trump also opens up about her experiences of nude modelling and cancel culture.
Melania was released in the US on 8th October.
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Featured image courtesy of Trump Whitehouse Archived via Flickr. No changes were made to this image. Image licence found here.
