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Trump's anti-abortion stance helped him win in 2016. Will it hurt him in 2024? : Consider This from NPR

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Trump's anti-abortion stance helped him win in 2016. Will it hurt him in 2024? : Consider This from NPR

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Former President Donald Trump speaks at a rally outside Schnecksville Fire Hall in Schnecksville, Pennsylvania.

Andrew Harnik/Getty Images


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Former President Donald Trump speaks at a rally outside Schnecksville Fire Hall in Schnecksville, Pennsylvania.

Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

1. Trump wasn’t always anti-abortion.

Trump will forever be known as the president who appointed the justices who helped overturn Roe v. Wade in June of 2022. But the former president hasn’t always been against abortion rights. In 1999, when he was considering a run for the White House, Trump told NBC’s Tim Russert on Meet the Press:

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“I’m very pro-choice. I hate the concept of abortion. I hate it, I hate everything it stands for. I cringe when people debate the subject. But I still believe in choice.”

By 2011, Trump had changed his position. Once again he was considering a run for president, and Trump described himself as “pro-life” when speaking to the Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC.

2. When he first ran for president, about half the country supported a legal right to abortion.

But a key group of voters overwhelmingly opposed it – white evangelical Christians. Trump needed their support, and he was successful: exit polling in the 2016 election showed nearly two-thirds of Christian voters chose Trump.

Their candidate delivered. Trump appointed three Supreme Court justices during his term– which ultimately led to the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

Some Republicans in Congress are pushing for a federal ban on abortion, with many in the Republican base pressuring Trump to voice his support. Last week, Trump posted a video on Truth Social that supported leaving abortion access up to the states:

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My view is that now that we have abortion where everybody wanted it from a legal standpoint. The states will determine by vote or legislation or perhaps both, and whatever they decide must be the law of the land, in this case the law of the state.”

By saying he will instead leave the issue to the states – essentially the status quo – Trump appears to be trying to avoid strengthening Democrats’ ability to rally their voters around abortion rights.

3. Now, an anti-abortion stance could be a political liability.

Every time there’s been an abortion referendum since Dobbs, voters have favored abortion rights.

Supporting a national abortion ban is a position that some Republicans like Chris Christie and Nikki Haley have said was unwise or at least impractical.

This election year, Trump’s position on abortion could influence whether he wins or loses the race. But if he is elected, anti-abortion activists will likely push Trump to use the power of the executive branch to restrict abortion access.

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For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

This episode was produced by Brianna Scott. It was edited by Courtney Dorning and Megan Pratz.

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Live news: Sell-off in cruise operators creates choppy conditions ahead of Viking IPO

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Live news: Sell-off in cruise operators creates choppy conditions ahead of Viking IPO

Fed decision: The US Federal Reserve is expected to keep the federal funds rate on hold at the conclusion of its two-day meeting. After a series of hotter than expected employment and inflation figures, investors will be listening for clues on when the central bank expects to cut interest rates.

US employment: US government data is expected to show that job openings in March edged down to 8.69mn from 8.75mn in February. Separately, ADP will release its US employment report for April, which will give some insight into the labour market before the official government figures on Friday. Private payrolls are expected to have added 175,000 jobs in April, compared with the 184,000 jobs added in March.

Pfizer: The pharmaceutical company is expected to report that quarterly revenue declined 23.4 per cent from the same period last year to $14bn, according to LSEG, as the company faces weak demand for its Covid-19 vaccine and antiviral medicine.

Other companies: CVS Health, KKR, Marriott International, Estée Lauder, Kraft Heinz, Yum Brands, and Norwegian Cruise Line will report earnings before the bell. DoorDash, eBay and Etsy will report after the markets close.

Manufacturing: Activity in the US manufacturing sector is expected to have remained in expansion territory, but April’s reading is forecast to have ticked down 0.3 percentage points to a reading of 50.

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Some Republicans expected to join Arizona Democrats to pass repeal of 1864 abortion ban

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Some Republicans expected to join Arizona Democrats to pass repeal of 1864 abortion ban

Two Republican state senators are expected to join Democrats in Arizona on Wednesday to pass a bill to repeal the state’s Civil War-era near-total abortion ban — three weeks after the state Supreme Court ruled the law was enforceable and one week after the House passed its own legislation to roll back the restrictions that have stirred widespread controversy.

GOP state Sens. T.J. Shope and Shawnna Bolick have both indicated they will support the Democratic-led repeal effort, giving Democrats the necessary votes in the chamber.

Notably, Bolick is married to one of the state Supreme Court justices who voted to reinstate the 1864 law, which supersedes a 15-week abortion ban that was enacted in 2022 and which blocks all abortions except to save the life of the pregnant woman.

While Republicans in the state Senate could delay the repeal vote with procedural hurdles, Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, has expressed confidence the repeal bill will pass Wednesday.

Hobbs has also expressed frustration that the Legislature didn’t take action sooner, noting that unless the courts impose a pause on the 1864 abortion ban, there could be a monthslong gap between when it goes into effect and then its repeal kicks in.

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As of Tuesday morning, the office of Attorney General Kris Mayes said the effective date for the ban has been pushed from June 8 to June 27, after the state Supreme Court rejected a motion to reconsider. If the ban is repealed by the Legislature, that move wouldn’t take effect until 90 days after the legislative session ends, which must be by June 30, meaning the repeal of the 1864 law may not take effect until around Oct. 1.

Some Democrats have acknowledged “uncertainty” that at least two GOP senators will vote for repeal on Wednesday “because the Republican Party has moved to the extremes since Trump first got elected,” Sen. Priya Sundareshan, a Democrat, said on a call with reporters on Tuesday.

People protest after Arizona’s Supreme Court revived a law dating to 1864 that bans abortion in virtually all instances, in Peoria, AZ, April 14, 2024.

Caitlin O’Hara/Reuters

Conservatives in the state House initially resisted efforts to fast-track legislation to undo the ban.

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“Legislatures are not built for knee-jerk reactions,” state House Speaker Ben Toma said during one floor session.

He has also said that “abortion is a complicated topic — it is ethically, morally complex. I understand that we have deeply held beliefs, and I would ask everyone in this chamber to respect the fact that some of us who believe that abortion is in fact the murder of children.”

Anti-abortion groups have also rallied around the state Capitol seeking to urge lawmakers to stick by the ban. Arizona voter Desiree Mayes, a Republican, told ABC News last mont that “if you really if you really believe that babies in the womb are precious and valuable, they deserve equal protection,” she said, explaining she doesn’t support exceptions for rape or incest.

But Democrats, locally and across the country have called out the ban — as have some Republicans who otherwise say they oppose abortion, like Donald Trump. Three Republicans in the state House ultimately joined the Democratic minority to repeal the law.

“This is a stain on history that this ban even exists — from a time when the age of consent was 10, from a time when women didn’t have the right to vote,” Arizona state Sen. Eva Burch, a Democrat, previously told ABC News’ Elizabeth Schulze.

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Anti-abortion groups are encouraging supporters of the near-total ban to again gather on the Capitol grounds on Wednesday to pressure Republicans to stick together and not join Democrats. Meanwhile, Arizona for Abortion Access organizers continue to gather signatures for a potential ballot initiative that would go before voters in November and would protect abortion up to the point of fetal viability, around 24 weeks into pregnancy.

House Republicans are considering proposing their own ballot measures for November to counter the pro-abortion access initiative.

“We don’t deserve to win the legislature if we cannot get it right on the basic tenets of our Republican platform, which is life,” said state GOP Sen. Anthony Kern.

If the repeal bill does not pass the state Senate, Democratic Sen. Sundareshan said her party would “keep fighting” by reintroducing bills or motions.

“We’ll do whatever is available to us to continue to fight to repeal this ban,” she told reporters on Tuesday. “And we will continue fighting to repeal all of the bans that remain on the books.”

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Video: Police Arrest Columbia Protesters Occupying Hamilton Hall

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Video: Police Arrest Columbia Protesters Occupying Hamilton Hall

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Police Arrest Columbia Protesters Occupying Hamilton Hall

Officers entered the building through a second-floor window using a bridge on top of an emergency service vehicle.

“The people united will never be defeated.” “So, we have hundreds of police officers, they’re surrounding the perimeter of the encampment. Most of them, well, actually, not all of them — some of them have their body camera lights flashing. They have club sticks, riot gear, handcuffs.” “There’s a student knocked unconscious. “We are all Palestinian.”

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