Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Tuesday called out Donald Trump’s noncommittal stance on abortion access, accusing him of saying whatever he thinks will help him retake the presidency.
“He doesn’t believe anything,” the California Democrat said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” show. “He believes in his political survival, and that’s what he’s trying to accommodate. But you can’t be a little bit pro-life. You’re there or you’re not there.”
Pelosi’s comments come a day after Trump posted a video on his Truth Social platform to boast about his role in the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade in 2022, a move that ended the constitutional right to an abortion. He indicated that he’s happy leaving the issue up to individual states, creating a patchwork of abortion access around the country.
“My view is 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,” said the presumptive GOP nominee for the White House.
The video, which arrived amid pressure to clarify his position on the matter, failed to address what Trump would do as president if Republicans take control of Congress and pass stringent nationwide abortion restrictions.
His remarks were an obvious attempt to play both sides of the issue, Pelosi charged.
“He either is stupid, or he thinks the rest of us are stupid,” she said on the morning show.
Republicans’ hard-line stance on abortion has proved to be a losing issue. When put to the people ― even in red states like Kansas, Kentucky and Ohio ― voters in recent years have elected to protect abortion access.
President Joe Biden has vowed to do everything he can to restore abortion access nationwide. However, that would require clearing some major hurdles, including Democrats taking control of both the House and the Senate, and amending filibuster rules.
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