‘We’re going to hold Trump accountable’: President Biden speaks on abortion rights at Tampa campaign stop
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TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — One week before Florida’s six-week abortion ban takes effect, President Joe Biden is in Tampa to champion reproductive freedom.
This comes as Democrats seize on the legislation and the Florida Supreme Court’s recent ruling to generate support, pointing to the pro-life records of their Republican opponents, like Sen. Rick Scott and former President Donald Trump.
Despite the Sunshine State’s increasingly conservative lean, Democrats believe Florida is still a battleground state and is in play for them in 2024.
What did President Biden say?
Speaking at Hillsborough Community College, Biden addressed those who feel defeated among the alleged “backslide” of women’s rights and believe it’s “inevitable.”
“It’s not inevitable,” Biden said. “It’s not inevitable if you vote.”
Biden highlighted important Florida races, like Republican Rick Scott’s Senate reelection campaign against former U.S. Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell.
“Debbie (Mucarsel-Powell) is running against Rick Scott, who wants to sunset Social Security,” Biden said. “I think the voters are going to sunset Rick Scott.”
Though most of his speech was about abortion rights, Biden discussed First Lady Dr. Jill Biden’s ongoing work as a community college professor. He said she refers to the schools as a “best kept secret in education” and vowed to make community colleges tuition free if reelected.
“It’ll grow the economy. It won’t cost the taxpayers,” Biden said.
The President called Florida’s six-week abortion ban “one of the nation’s most extreme anti-abortion laws.”
It’s criminalizing reproductive health care before women even know they’re pregnant, Biden said. “It’s bizarre. You could put a doctor in prison.”
Biden addressed his opponent, former President Donald Trump, who recently said abortion rights should be left up to each state to decide. Voters will “hold him accountable” for his role in overturning Roe v. Wade in 2022, Biden said.
‘A nightmare’: Tampa Bay lawmakers, advocates respond to Sen. Scott’s stance on abortion rights
“He’s wrong. The Supreme Court was wrong. It should be a constitutional right in the federal Constitution,” Biden said. “It’s not about state’s rights; it’s about women’s rights.”
Biden slammed Trump and Republicans nationwide for efforts to ban IVF and birth control after the Supreme Court overturned Roe, a decision that stood for 50 years.
“Now in America today, in 2024, women have fewer rights than their mothers and grandmothers had, because of Donald Trump,” Biden said.
Biden promised to veto a nationwide abortion ban if one reached his desk. He urged women to use their electoral “power” to vote out anti-abortion candidates.
“I said at the time (of the SCOTUS decision), ‘I don’t think the court or the MAGA Republicans have a clue about the power of women in America’,” Biden said. “But they’re beginning to find out.”
Why did Biden choose Florida?
Biden’s choice to visit Florida is a strategic one, according to his campaign. Florida’s six-week abortion ban will send shockwaves through the Southeast, including in the important swing states of Georgia and North Carolina.
Women from states with more restrictive abortion laws frequently seek care in Florida. 6,566 out-of-state residents travelled to the Sunshine State for an abortion in 2023, according to the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration.
In an April 1 opinion filed in the Florida Supreme Court, justices ruled that there is no right to an abortion in the state, upholding a 15-week abortion ban in a decision that automatically triggered a six-week ban to take effect 30 days later. The court has taken a considerable conservative shift in recent years, with five of the seven Florida Supreme Court justices appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Florida’s new law will be one of the most restrictive in the country, and advocates say it will effectively amount to a complete ban: six weeks gestation is before many women know they are pregnant, and the state will still require two in-person visits with the abortion provider 24 hours apart.
Florida Supreme Court allows recreational marijuana, abortion amendments on 2024 ballot
Florida voters will have the chance to weigh in on reproductive freedom at the polls in November. Amendment 4, a citizen ballot initiative that would enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution, is on the ballot. It would permit abortions up to the point of viability, as determined by a physician.
Florida Democrats and the Biden/Harris campaign are spreading the word about the measure, as it could also bring in support for their candidates up and down the ballot.
Democrats credited their successes in the 2022 midterms to reinvigorated support for abortion rights after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. Biden is expected to place the blame for Florida’s abortion restrictions squarely on former President Trump, who has repeatedly taken credit for appointing the justices who overturned Roe.
“Our advantage in the state isn’t just limited to abortion,” campaign communications director Michael Tyler told reporters in a call previewing Biden’s speech.
In a state with nearly one million more registered Republicans than Democrats, they need every vote they can get.
What are Republicans saying?
In a release from the Republican Party of Florida, Chairman Evan Power touted the state’s policy priorities, including “sound conservative fiscal policies,” “parental rights,” and support for Israel and law enforcement.
“Floridians top issues are immigration, the economy, and inflation, in all three areas Joe Biden has failed. Instead of coming to talk to Floridians about manufactured issues, he should get to work solving the real issues that he has failed to lead on. We also welcome him to learn from the successes that has made Florida a beacon of freedom for the rest of the country.”
Evan Power, Chairman of the Republican Party of Florida
As the President headed to Tampa on Air Force One, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis held a news conference in Naples.
“I hear that Joe Biden is on his way to Florida this afternoon,” DeSantis said. “And all I can say is, this is a guy who has intentionally opened the borders of this country and caused great harm. His policies have caused families to suffer with higher prices and higher interest rates.”
DeSantis then discussed the abortion rights constitutional amendment.
“Now, he’s coming down to try to support a constitutional amendment that will mandate abortion up until the moment of birth, that will eliminate parental consent for minors and that’s written in a way that’s intentionally designed to deceive voters,” DeSantis said.
‘The people of Florida aren’t stupid’: Court pushes back on arguments against abortion amendment
The Florida Supreme Court, largely made up of DeSantis appointees, ruled against the state’s stance on Amendment 4 earlier this month, clearing the way for it to appear on the 2024 ballot. Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody argued the measure’s ballot summary was misleading, but justices concluded otherwise.
The measure’s ballot summary, approved by the state Supreme Court, states in part, “This amendment does not change the Legislature’s constitutional authority to require notification to a parent or guardian before a minor has an abortion.”
“All I can tell you is Floridians are not buying what Joe Biden is selling,” DeSantis said. “And in November, we’re going to play an instrumental role in sending him back to Delaware where he belongs.”
Former President Donald Trump shifted his own public position on abortion earlier this month. In a video statement posted to his “Truth Social” platform, Trump took credit for appointing the Supreme Court justices that helped overturn Roe v. Wade. However, he added that it should now be left up to states – not the federal government – to decide abortion law.
“Many states will be different,” Trump said. “Many will have a different number of weeks, or some will have more conservative than others, and that’s what they will be.”
Trump shows ‘formidable lead’ over Biden among Florida voters, FAU poll says
Will there be protesters at Biden’s event?
Biden’s campaign events face push-back from the left and the right. Both pro-life groups and left-wing activist groups have plans to protest the president’s visit.
Students for Life will protest the event and Biden’s pro-choice policies on Tuesday afternoon.
Organizations like the USF Students for a Democratic Society and Bay Area Dream Defenders will also hold a demonstration. They plan to call attention to America’s response to Israel’s bombardment of Gaza in a protest titled, “Say No to Genocide Joe.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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