Trump attacks Democrats at march
First to attend anti-abortion event in D.C.
WASHINGTON • Donald Trump became the first U.S. president to attend the annual March for Life in Washington on Friday, unleashing a fierce attack on his Democratic rivals during a rally in an election- year show of support for opponents of abortion rights.
“Unborn children have never had a stronger defender in the White House,” the Republican president told thousands of cheering people at the rally, touting his anti- abortion policies and his appointments of conservatives to the federal judiciary including Supreme Court Justices Brett Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch.
Demonstrators from around the country converged on a cool, overcast day in the U.S. capital for the event held annually around the anniversary of the Supreme Court’s landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that recognized a woman’s constitutional right to an abortion and legalized the procedure nationwide. Many high school and college students joined in the rally.
Trump, seeking re- election on Nov. 3, addressed the event in the midst of his impeachment trial in the U.S. Senate on charges passed by the Democratic-led House of Representatives. While not mentioning impeachment, he assailed congressional Democrats on abortion policy. Trump drew loud applause from the crowd.
Among his most loyal political supporters are evangelical Christians, who strongly oppose abortion rights. The event took on aspects of a campaign rally, with some in the crowd chanting “Four More Years!”
“Sadly, the far left is actively working to erase our God-given rights, shut down faith- based charities, ban religious believers from the public square and silence Americans who believe in the sanctity of life,” Trump said. “They are coming after me because I am fighting for you. And we are fighting for those who have no voice, and we will win.”
Trump, who years earlier had supported abortion rights, cast himself as a committed abortion opponent on religious grounds.
Trump vowed during the 2016 presidential campaign to appoint justices who would overturn Roe v. Wade.
Abortion remains one of the most divisive issues in the United States. About 58 per cent of U.S. adults say abortion should be legal in most or all cases, according to a Reuters/ipsos poll last year.
Past U.S. presidents have opted to stay away from the march, though Republicans Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush both previously delivered remarks to the rally remotely.
The Supreme Court on March 4 will hear arguments in a major case concerning the legality of abortion clinic regulations in Louisiana that could lead to new curbs on access to the procedure.