Biden's Response to Potential Federal Abortion Ban

"Now to the 2024 presidential campaign where abortion rights is taking center stage. When Donald Trump was President, he nominated the justices that would overturn Roe versus Wade.

 Since then, 21 states have moved to restrict or ban the procedure, but many Republicans want to go further with a federal ban passed by Congress. CBS's Ouija Jang reports that Trump today tried to clarify his position, angering his conservative base.

Former President Donald Trump suggested today that the federal government should stay out of the abortion rights debate. "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." 

The remarks followed months of mixed signals from the former president, owning his part in overturning Roe v. Wade just as he did today, saying, "Since I was proudly the person responsible," but refusing to commit to a National Abortion ban even while suggesting in the past he would support one.

When you heard his remarks, were you surprised at all? "I was surprised and disappointed," Marjorie Dannenfelser, the president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, spoke to Trump on the phone this morning and thinks the door to a federal ban remains open.

 "But I actually do think that he will get there. I really believe that because I believe that there was something that compelled him to stand strong and defend fearlessly every single Supreme Court Justice that he put up.

 He never gave up on any of them. I don't think he'll give up on this."

President Biden, who was in Wisconsin today unveiling a new plan to forgive student loan debt for millions, agreed with her. If the Republicans put a federal ban on his desk, he'd sign it. His campaign promptly released a new ad featuring a Texas woman who says she nearly died twice unable to get the abortion she needed following a miscarriage, blaming Trump for enabling state-level bans on abortion passed since Roe was overturned.

Voters in Florida, Maryland, and New York will vote on abortion-related measures in November, and several other states, including key battlegrounds Arizona and Nevada, are considering adding measures to their ballots. Democrats hope the issue will give them an edge at the polls.