The right to abortion should be left to the US states to decide, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump said, effectively rejecting a national ban on abortion after months of mixed signals on one of the most contentious issues of the November election, AFP reports.
"My opinion is that now that we have abortion where everybody wanted it from a legal standpoint, the states are going to determine through a vote or legislation, or maybe both," the presumptive GOP presidential nominee said in a video posted on his Truth Social network.
"And whatever they decide should be the law of the land, in this case, the law of the state," he added.
His statement came after questions swirled for weeks about what his position would be on the issue, fueled by a New York Times article in February that said he had told advisers he liked the idea of a 16-week national abortion ban but was hesitant to consider it publicly lest he alienate his socially conservative supporters.
The U.S. Supreme Court's shocking 2022 decision - backed by three Trump nominees - left it up to states to create their own abortion laws.
Some have enacted near-total bans, while others, like Maryland, have passed laws enshrining the right to abortion. Many conservatives hope that a national ban could overturn laws like Maryland's.
Trump's rival for the White House, President Joe Biden, and Democrats have been outspoken on the issue - regularly pointing out that polls show most Americans oppose a federal ban.
Republican losses in other off-year elections, even in normally conservative states like Kansas, have been tied to the abortion issue.
In his video, Trump reiterated previous comments that, like former Republican President Ronald Reagan, when it comes to abortion, he is "firmly for exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother."
And again, he said he "strongly" supports access to IVF for "couples trying to have a precious baby. What could be more beautiful or better than that?" / BGNES
