In a rare moment of cross-ideological clarity on CNN, anchor John Berman fact-checked Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s assertion that former President Donald Trump supports a national abortion ban. During an interview marking the second anniversary of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, Whitmer accused Trump of paving the way for stringent national restrictions on abortion. However, Berman did not let her claims go unchallenged.
“He [Trump] appointed three justices to the Supreme Court who went into Congress and lied,” Governor Whitmer (D-MI) said. “They said that Roe was the settled law of the land. They betrayed that oath that they took when they went into office. And we would not be in this moment but for Donald Trump.” She added: “He’s the one that put these justices on the court. Regardless of the 18 different positions he’s taken over the years, he is absolutely front and center on the road to an all-out national abortion ban. And that’s why we’ve got to get Joe Biden elected this fall.”
Berman, in an atypical move for the often criticized left-leaning network, pointed out the inconsistency in Whitmer’s depiction of Trump’s stance.“He says he’s not on the road to an all-out federal abortion ban because he said he wants to leave it up to the states,” the host explained.
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Whitmer has been a prominent figure in the Left’s efforts to capitalize on political gains over the past two years. She has consistently asserted that Trump is orchestrating a nationwide abortion ban as she campaigns on behalf of Joe Biden.
“It’s really important to remind people that if Donald Trump gets a second term in the White House he has already committed to signing a national abortion ban,” Whitmer said in Milwaukee last week, according to The Midwesterner. “Biden is the only person on the ballot who would win the White House and will protect these fundamental rights.”
In April, Trump released a video statement on his position on the issue of abortion for the 2024 presidential election. Trump said he will leave it “up to the states to do the right thing” if elected again, going on to portray the Democrats as “radical” on the issue.
“The states will determine by vote or legislation or perhaps both, and whatever they decide must be the law of the land,” Trump explained. “Many states will be different. Many will have a different number of weeks, or some will [be] more conservative than others, and that’s what they will be. At the end of the day, this is all about the will of the people.”