The topic of abortion has highlighted differences between former President Donald Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) ahead of the 2024 election, which has the two Republicans leading the primary field.
While Trump has recently drawn the ire of anti-abortion organizations, DeSantis has been roundly praised by them, signaling an early divide among the Republican base on a hot-button social subject.
WATCH: HARRIS MISTAKENLY CREDITS NONEXISTENT AGENCY WITH APPROVING MIFEPRISTONE
The debate surrounds the consequences of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which returned the regulation of abortion to state governments.
While states have been going about regulation differently — including total bans, heartbeat bills, and 15-week bans — Dobbs opened up the political question of whether federalism is the right principle to follow for abortion by leaving such powers up to the states.
The decision has opened up a divide between those in the conservative movement who believe federalism is a workable solution and those who believe it leaves the United States in a morally untenable situation, allowing some states to end the lives of the unborn.
Trump found himself in hot water with the anti-abortion community last week when he backed the Dobbs premise, that states should decide the matter, rather than support federal legislation creating minimum standards for the practice.
SBA Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser called Trump’s position “morally indefensible,” saying, “We will oppose any presidential candidate who refuses to embrace at a minimum a 15-week national standard to stop painful late-term abortions while allowing states to enact further protections.”
“Holding to the position that it is exclusively up to the states is an abdication of responsibility by anyone elected to federal office,” she continued.
Likewise, Live Action President Lila Rose said Trump “DISQUALIFIED himself from the nomination of our nation’s pro-life political party by calling the human right to life merely a ‘state-level’ issue.”
Donald Trump has DISQUALIFIED himself from the nomination of our nation’s pro-life political party by calling the human right to life merely a “state-level” issue
Every human person is guaranteed due process and equal protection
The next Republican president must be willing to…
— Lila Rose (@LilaGraceRose) April 20, 2023
A spokesman for the Trump campaign called Trump “the most pro-life President in American history” and said, “Our focus here should be on saving lives and avoiding the Radical Left’s traps, not on dividing the pro-life community. The Radical Left, which includes late-term abortion advocates Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, is the only beneficiary when this happens.”
“Thanks to the Supreme Court’s recent decision, the States have now been empowered to take up the issue,” the statement to the Washington Examiner continued. “Even though much work remains to be done to defend the cause of life, President Trump believes it is in the States where the greatest advances can now take place to protect the unborn.”
Meanwhile, DeSantis, who has not announced a presidential run, signed a heartbeat bill on April 13 banning abortion in the state at around six weeks. He briefly touted the bill in last week’s keynote address at the Heritage Foundation Leadership Summit.
In turn, SBA Pro-Life America took out a five-figure ad buy thanking DeSantis, which included a statewide digital ad, as well as a placement in the Tampa Bay Times.
“We are proud to be pro-life in the state of Florida.”
Thank you @GovRonDeSantis and pro-life leaders in the Florida Legislature for passing and signing one of the most significant life-saving laws in the country!
Press release: https://t.co/yRYpqQonho pic.twitter.com/ypkS3ulTD7
— SBA Pro-Life America (@sbaprolife) April 17, 2023
Dannenfelser also released a statement saying, “Gov. DeSantis has always been a bold pro-life voice, never flinching in the face of extremist opposition in order to stand proudly in defending Floridians.”
While SBA has not endorsed any candidate for president, an alignment appears to be taking place.
“After signing a 15-week protection in 2022, he won in a landslide, and Republicans picked up seats in the legislature,” SBA Director of State Affairs Kelsey Pritchard told the Washington Examiner. “As lawmakers took up the Florida heartbeat bill this year, Gov. DeSantis never flinched. From day one, he was clear that the measure had his support, and he signed the Heartbeat Protection Act within 15 minutes of receiving it. He didn’t buckle under pressure from the media and the vocal opposition.”
Trump angered anti-abortion Americans after Republicans saw unexpectedly mediocre returns during the 2022 midterm election when he blamed the losses on the Dobbs decision and the “abortion issue” and those who call for no exceptions.
“It wasn’t my fault that the Republicans didn’t live up to expectations in the MidTerms,” Trump posted on Truth Social after the election. “It was the ‘abortion issue,’ poorly handled by many Republicans, especially those that firmly insisted on no exceptions, even in the case of rape, incest, or life of the mother, that lost large numbers of voters.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
While the DeSantis team did not return a request for comment from the Washington Examiner, pro-DeSantis super PAC Never Back Down, which is headed by former Trump administration official Ken Cuccinelli and recently added longtime Trump ally Adam Laxalt, returned a statement excoriating Trump.
“Donald Trump has turned his back on the pro-life community,” Never Back Down Communications Director Erin Perrine said. “He blamed the political losses of candidates he endorsed in the 2022 midterms on the pro-life movement, and now, he is backing down from saving unborn children’s lives.”
