Donald Trump. We all know Donald Trump. The 45th president of the USA, the man who received 34 counts of falsifying business records, and the random passerby in ‘Home Alone 2’. And despite the 2 assassination attempts on him, it is his “anti-abortion” policies that catches attention for further debate.
After his presidency period(2017-2021), he has once again dove headfirst into the waters of the presidential elections of 2024, and once again, on the “right” side of the river, with the Republican elephant emblazoned across his chest. And to no one’s surprise, the requests that he and his policy advisors bring along with his campaign, prove to be ultraconservative. The largest issue that has arisen, with his further rise to power, is the overruling of Roe v. Wade in 2022. This ended constitutional rights to abortion in the USA, which had previously allowed for unrestricted legal access in the first trimester, and limited state intervention later on. This obviously shocked people all over the world, and clearly contradicted the USA’s own values in ‘The Declaration of Independence’ which states “Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” as rights. Even the lyrics to ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ was contradicted as the country is no longer “the land of the free”.
There have been several legal cases, with the most significant being Planned Parenthood v. Casey in 1992, that has solidified the States’ right to interfere if a pregnancy has reached a certain point, but not to the extent of placing a “substantial obstacle” in their path. The majority of these cases have prioritized the health of women, ensuring that if complications were to occur during the pregnancy, lives would not be endangered. However, Mississippi’s Gestational Age Act began to undo all this progress and banned abortions after 15 weeks. This was then used and exacerbated by the Supreme Court, in which Trump appointed three conservative justices, making the 6-3 majority of conservatives to liberals that overturned Roe v. Wade.
And even with the horrific recounts of girls and women losing their lives due to the ban in 41 states, Trump proudly proclaims that he was able to “kill Roe v. Wade” after “50 years of failure,”. This insensitivity possessed by a “pro-life” man of influence, has stolen the futures of many women all over the US, and encouraged the restriction of personal freedom of choice of 50.5% of their population. In a recent vice presidential debate, Vance(Trump’s right hand man), decided to take a “pro-family” stance, disregarding the criticism of “the right to your own body- is determined on geography” posed by Walz, attempting to paint abortion bans as their way of supporting fertility in the country.
Trump and his representatives all see the oppression of rights to personal autonomy and bodies as a great Republican achievement, willing to sacrifice lives for their conservatism. So as the elections approach in November, the urging question burns hotter: Will the choice of women finally matter more than his?
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Beautifully written.