Harris visits Minnesota abortion clinic
US must be ‘nation that trusts women,’ VP says
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Vice President Kamala Harris made a historic visit to an abortion clinic in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Thursday, demanding that the U.S. “be a nation that trusts women” as access to reproductive medical care has come under assault.
The visit to the Planned Parenthood facility marked the Biden campaign’s most dramatic push to make access to abortion a defining issue in the 2024 election. It was the first time a U.S. president or vice president has visited a clinic that provides abortion services.
Harris, the nation’s first female vice president, has become the White House’s leading voice on restoring abortion rights after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, ending a 50-year constitutional right to an abortion.
“In this environment, these attacks against an individual’s right to make decisions about their whole body are outrageous and, in many instances, just plain old immoral,” Harris said. “How dare these elected leaders believe they are in a better position to tell women what is in their best interest?”
The trip was the final stop of Harris’ “Fight for Reproductive Freedoms” tour, which launched in January and included visits to Wisconsin, California, Georgia, Michigan and Arizona.
While Biden struggles to convince Americans of an improving economy, according to polls, abortion rights has proven to be a winning issue for Democrats in elections since 2022. The Biden campaign has set out to relentlessly remind voters that it was former President Donald Trump’s three Supreme Court appointments who led to Roe’s dismantling. The recent Alabama court decision protecting embryos awaiting IVF implantation as “extrauterine children” has added yet more fuel to the fire.
Trump said in a Fox News town hall in January that he’s “proud to have done it” when asked about the court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade. He later added that he supports exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother.
Harris was joined at the clinic by Minnesota’s Democratic governor, Tim Walz, and Democratic Rep. Betty McCollum. Walz signed legislation last year codifying the “fundamental right” to an abortion in the state and repealing the state’s 24-hour waiting period before an abortion.
“Many of you have asked why am I here at this facility,” Harris said after touring the St. Paul Health Center–Vandalia, which remained open to patients. “It is because right now in our country we are facing a very serious health crisis, and the crisis is affecting many, many people in our country, most of whom are frankly silently suffering.”
Patients from Texas and Florida
Harris highlighted the many services Planned Parenthood provides that are unrelated to abortion, such as Pap smears, vaccines, diabetes screening and menopause treatment.
“Please do understand that when we talk about clinics such as this, it is absolutely about health care and reproductive health care,” Harris said. “So, everyone get ready for the language: uterus. That part of the body needs a lot of medical care from time to time. Issues like fibroids. We can handle this. Breast cancer screenings. Contraceptive care.”
She said she believes shutting down clinics that provide those services was one of many “potentially intended” consequences of the decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022.
Still, abortion was front and center. Minnesota has become a safe haven for people from states that have passed bans on abortion in the nearly two years since Roe was overturned.
“Since Roe was overturned, I’ve cared for patients from everywhere − from nearby states like South Dakota and North Dakota and Wisconsin, but from faraway states like Texas, Alabama, Wyoming, Florida, Oklahoma, Missouri and the list goes on,” said Sarah Traxler, chief medical officer for Planned Parenthood North Central States.
Traxler said the St. Paul abortion clinic has seen a 25% increase in abortions since the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision that overturned Roe. Out-of-state patients have doubled, she said.
Harris called the St. Paul clinic “an example of what true leadership looks like.”
“It is only right and fair that people have access to the health care they need, and that they have access to health care in an environment where they are treated with dignity and respect,” Harris said.
‘Life is a human right’
A heavy police and Secret Service presence surrounded the building in anticipation of the vice president’s arrival. In the course of the half-century battle over abortion rights in the U.S., abortion clinics have at times been targets of violent protest, including shootings and bombings.
An hour before Harris was scheduled to speak, about two dozen protesters gathered outside the St. Paul Planned Parenthood, holding signs with slogans such as “life is a human right,” “they’re killing babies here” and “the real war on women.”
Diana Halsey, a 70-year-old Minneapolis resident, was among those hoisting signs with anti-abortion slogans. She said she stops by the clinic about once a week to pray that the women coming and going “get the help they need.”
She was surprised to learn that Harris would also be dropping by Thursday and hurried to find a bigger display. As Harris drove by, Halsey’s large “life is a human right” sign was on immediate display.
“It’s sad,” she said of Harris’ visit. “I really feel bad about our medical community – that they are not supporting.”
On the other side, Paige Robinson, a 22-year-old University of Minnesota student, was among a handful of supporters who gathered outside the clinic Thursday, intermingling with the protesters, trying to catch a glimpse of the vice president as her motorcade exited the building.
“I think it’s very cool,” Robinson, a Democrat, said of Harris’ visit. “It’s nice to see such clear support of our prowoman policies.”