Opinion Today: What will happen to abortion under Trump?

Biden is not making the stakes clear enough to voters.

View in browser|nytimes.com Continue reading the main story January 29, 2024 By Lauren Kelley Deputy Op-Ed Editor, News As it has become clear that we are almost certainly looking at a second Trump-Biden face-off this November, a debate has broken out among some abortion rights supporters. Numerous data points since the summer of 2022, when Roe v. Wade was overturned, point to abortion being a motivating factor for voters: They come out when abortion is on the ballot, and they generally vote in favor of shoring up access to abortion. The debate is about how that dynamic, which so far has largely played out at the state level, will translate to a presidential election. Specifically, what does President Biden — who is something of an awkward advocate of the pro-choice cause, given his conflicting personal feelings about abortion — need to do to rally voters on this issue? Perhaps he merely needs to not be Trump and make general promises about supporting reproductive rights, as he and Vice President Kamala Harris have done in recent speeches. But maybe, as Mary Ziegler argues in a guest essay today for Times Opinion, that won't be enough. Ziegler, a law professor and abortion historian, writes that if Biden wants to get Democrats off their couches and out to the polls, he ought to highlight the real stakes of this election when it comes to abortion, by making it clear specifically what Trump could do in a second term. Ziegler acknowledges that Trump "hardly sounds like a passionate supporter of fetal rights" these days, but she notes that if he wins, he will have "different incentives once in office." There are several things Trump could do with his executive power to roll back American abortion access much more significantly — things that Biden is not spending much, if any, time highlighting on the campaign trail. "The choice in this election is not simply between Joe Biden and Donald Trump," writes Ziegler. "The choice is between the status quo — or a chance for more protection for reproductive rights — and the possibility of an effective abortion ban that would be all but impossible to achieve using democratic means." Read the guest essay: Mustafa Hussain for The New York Times Guest Essay How Trump Could Institute a Backdoor Federal Abortion Ban President Biden should be clear about the risks of a second Trump term. By Mary Ziegler Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT Here's what we're focusing on today: Editors' Picks Domicide: The Mass Destruction of Homes Should Be a Crime Against Humanity What has happened to homes and lives in Gaza is a stand-alone crime. Even if it is physically rebuilt, the trauma of losing homes will last for decades. By Balakrishnan Rajagopal More From Opinion Jessica Bennett The Audacity of E. Jean Carroll E. 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