In a sign of how much Donald Trump‘s hold over the base has eclipsed the anti-abortion community’s demands, the former president is receiving little blowback for his stance on the issue, even from some prominent anti-abortion groups themselves.
During a Fox News town hall on Wednesday night, Trump touted his nomination of the three Supreme Court justices that helped overturn Roe v. Wade as a “miracle” while also preaching moderation on abortion restrictions.
“You wouldn’t be asking that question, even talking about the issue, because for 54 years, they were trying to get Roe v. Wade terminated. And I did it and I’m proud to have done it,” Trump first explained at the Des Moines, Iowa, event before comparing himself to President Ronald Reagan, who supported exemptions in the case of a mother’s life, rape, or incest.
But then he veered into territory that has led to some flak in the past.
“We’re living in a time when there has to be a little bit of a concession one way or the other,” the former president said. “I will say this: You have to win elections. Otherwise, you’re going to be back where you were, and you can’t let that ever happen again.”
Trump’s comments highlight the political albatross for the GOP that the issue of abortion has become, especially as President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign is betting that centering the 2024 election on abortion could help him overcome low approval ratings on the economy and voter fatigue.
And despite his call for concessions, multiple anti-abortion groups did not criticize Trump’s stance, instead pointing to his role in overturning Roe or avoiding mentioning him at all.
“Donald Trump is the most pro-life president in my lifetime,” said Penny Nance, CEO and president of Concerned Women for America, in a statement to the Washington Examiner. “And he is right, without his leadership, his appointment of 270 constitutionalist judges and three Supreme Court justices, Roe v. Wade would still be the law of the land.”
Nance, who endorsed Trump for president on Monday, also agreed with Trump’s assertion that Republicans need to win elections. “Politicians need to lean into the life issue, explain their position and, even more importantly, the radical position of their opponents,” she added.
Students for Life Action has not endorsed a candidate in the primary, but the group did not criticize Trump’s position in a statement.
“President Trump has a great record on protecting life in law, and we plan to rally the Youth Vote to vote pro-life first in the next election because abortion is on the ballot,” said Kristan Hawkins, president of Students for Life Action. “We are looking for a candidate to confront the radical agenda of the Biden administration that has proved once and for all that abortion is federal and a lot can be done.”
Marjorie Dannenfelser, the president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, a group that has gone back and forth with Trump over abortion in the past, did not directly address Trump’s comments in a statement to the Washington Examiner.
“The important thing is that every single candidate, from presidential to Senate to state legislative candidates, communicate the contrast, the choice to be made,” Dannenfelser said. “It is vital that the presidential candidates communicate the necessity of protecting children when they feel pain. If they do this, we win.”
The statements from the anti-abortion groups offer a window into Trump’s hold on the Republican Party, just days before the Jan. 15 Iowa caucuses, where he holds a large lead over his rivals.
Still, the former president has been blasted in the past for claiming that Gov. Ron DeSantis’s (R-FL) six-week abortion ban signed into law in April was “terrible” during an interview with NBC’s Meet the Press last fall.
Trump took aim against DeSantis again on Wednesday night, saying he doesn’t know “what he really believes because, you know, you never know with a politician, and he’s just another politician as far as I’m concerned.”
Mack Shelley, a political scientist at Iowa State University, told the Washington Examiner that Trump’s comments during the town hall won’t hinder him from winning the Iowa caucuses.
“Well, it might carve off a little bit of support from Trump,” Shelley said. “But he’ll still come out way ahead in the end. The big fight of course is for second place. So I don’t see it having an impact on the order of finish. Trump will still be No. 1 regardless.”
Trump currently steamrolls his rivals at 53.6% support in a RealClearPolitics average of Iowa polls. Haley polls slightly above DeSantis at 17.2%, while the Florida governor is in third place at 15.2%.
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The former president’s comments are likely an indication that appealing to independent or swing state voters by touting abortion restriction could cost Republicans the 2024 election.
“Trump’s approach seems sensible, I suppose,” Shelley said. “It took him and I guess Republican strategists a little while to figure out that this is a sort of delicate balancing act.”