Kamala Harris hit with community note over post claiming Trump would ban abortion

Trump appointed three justices to the Supreme Court during his term, all of whom voted to overturn the constitutional right to an abortion set in the Roe v. Wade precedent.

By Ben Whedon

Published: July 1, 2024 2:09pm

Vice President Kamala Harris this week claimed that former President Donald Trump would seek to ban abortion nationwide should he return to the White House, a post that earned her a community note from X in light of Trump's repeated statements to the contrary.

"Donald Trump would ban abortion nationwide. President [Joe Biden] and I will do everything in our power to stop him and restore women's reproductive freedom," she posted on X.

"President Trump has repeatedly said he will not sign a national abortion ban," the attached note read. Included were links to CNN, the BBC, the Associated Press, the New York Times, and Trump's Truth Social account asserting his preference that abortion be left to the states or his refusal to back a nationwide ban.

Trump appointed three justices to the Supreme Court during his term, all of whom voted to overturn the constitutional right to an abortion set in the Roe v. Wade precedent. The Dobbs v. Jackson decision did not ban abortion nationwide, but permitted states to do so.

Trump himself has stood by the decision and voiced support for deciding the matter state by state. He has also endorsed exceptions to abortion bans in cases of rape, incest, and threats to the life of the mother.

During the presidential debate on Thursday, Trump stated that "what I did is I put three great Supreme Court justices on the court, and they happened to vote favor of killing Roe v. Wade and moving it back to states."

"This is something that everybody wanted now... I did that," he insisted. "Now the states are working it out. If you look at Ohio, it was a decision that was-- it was an end result that was a little bit more liberal than you would have thought. Kansas, I would say the same thing. Texas is different. Florida is different, but they're all making their own decisions right now, and right now, states control it."

"That's the vote of the people like Ronald Reagan. I believe the exceptions. I am a person that believes, and frankly, I think it's important to believe in the exceptions," he went on. "Some people, you have to follow your heart. Some people don't believe in that, but I believe in the exceptions for rape, incest, and the life of the mother. I think it's very important."