The issue of abortion rights received almost no attention during the second round of debates Tuesday and Wednesday, even as Democrats have shifted to the Left on abortion ahead of the election.
Though a couple of candidates on stage identified as “pro-choice,” the moderators did not ask questions about abortion rights, and only in one instance did candidates redirect answers to address the topic.
On Wednesday, Sen. Kamala Harris of California attacked former Vice President Joe Biden over his past support of the Hyde Amendment, which is a provision added to spending bills that prevents government funding from paying for abortions except in the cases of rape, incest, or if a woman’s pregnancy threatens her life.
Biden said closer to the start of his campaign that he supported maintaining the ban, but quickly reversed himself after pressure from outside groups and others vying for the nomination. Harris asked him to explain the switch, and he briefly responded that women used to have more ways to access abortion. He said that because his healthcare proposal would allow everyone the option to participate in a government plan, then the plan should also cover abortions.
He also noted that other Democrats who had worked in Congress and were running for president have voted for spending bills that contain the Hyde Amendment.
Abortion rights weren’t raised during Tuesday’s debate, causing Planned Parenthood to blast the “deafening silence” on the issue. The organization said the debate should have included a discussion about how to “protect and expand access to abortion.” On Wednesday, Planned Parenthood said voters “deserve more than a mere five minutes touching on this critical issue.”
The omission was notable given the attention that the Trump administration has paid to restricting abortion, and the way that Democrats have embraced abortion without restrictions. Blue states have sought to loosen restrictions on abortion, even when it occurs late in a pregnancy, while red states have passed abortion bans that do not contain exemptions for rape or incest.
All candidates running for the Democratic nomination for president support repealing the Hyde Amendment. Trump has said he is “strongly pro-life” but wants to maintain exceptions for rape, incest, and when a woman’s pregnancy threatens her life.
Susan B. Anthony List, an anti-abortion organization that is influential with the Trump administration, called out Biden specifically in a statement and said the the position was “extremist” and would be “forcing taxpayers to fund abortion on demand.”
Trump vowed during his 2016 campaign that he would only appoint justices that he believed would overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion nationwide. Since his election, the Senate has confirmed his appointees Brett Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch, tilting the court more conservative.
The Trump administration is planning to block doctors who get Title X federal family planning grants from directly referring for abortions, and passed rules that give medical providers a way to report instances in which they are forced to refer to abortions despite religious or moral objections.
