If she’s elected in November, Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris said she would work with Congress to pass a bill to restore abortion rights nationwide, while speaking with Wisconsin Public Radio.
The Vice President also said that she supports killing the Senate filibuster to codify abortion rights into law.
“I think we should eliminate the filibuster for Roe and get us to the point where 51 votes would be what we need to put back in law the protections for reproductive freedom,” the Vice President told NPR reporter Kate Archer Kent in an interview that aired Tuesday morning.
This appears to be Harris’ first on the record comment in favor of eliminating the Senate filibuster since beginning her campaign.
With the current filibuster, legislation needs 60 votes from Senators to pass. Harris, however, told NPR she’s optimistic that Democrats will flip the House and hold the Senate to allow her to proactively go forward with bills to protect reproductive health rights.
Wisconsin, a crucial swing state, passed legislation in 2023 that legalizes abortion through the 22nd week of gestation.
However, Wisconsin abortion opponents are citing an 1849 law that claims to ban the procedure in all case except when the mother’s life is in danger. Lower courts argued that the law only applies to infanticide and not consensual abortions.
Democratic presidential nominee, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, speaks during an event at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre on September 20, 2024, in Atlanta, Georgia. Harris spoke about abortion and reproductive rights in Georgia as she continues to campaign against Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump.
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Since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in the landmark Dobbs decision two years ago, a growing number of states have responded by passing their own laws codifying the right to abortion.
There are nine states, including the swing states of Arizona and Nevada, that will vote on abortion rights this November.
Commentator Mark Halperin played Harris’ NPR clip on his 2Way talk this morning.
“That’s big news,” Halperin said. “It seems to me that it’s smart.”
Halperin noted that Sen. Mitch McConnell and “Senate institutionalists won’t like it,” but Harris’ stance is a “pretty bold statement about the value she puts on about codifying Roe.”
On Friday, Harris spoke on abortion rights to a crowd in Georgia. She told Amber Nicole Thurman’s tragic story seeking help. In a powerful moment the crowd began chanting her name, “Amber Nicole Thurman. Amber Nicole Thurman.”
“We’re saying that we’re going to create public policy that says that a doctor will only kick in to give the care that somebody needs if they’re about to die? Think about what we’re saying right now. You’re saying that good policy, logical policy, moral policy, humane policy is about saying that a health care provider will only start providing that care when you’re about to die?”
Newsweek reached out to Harris and Trump’s campaigns for additional comments.
Harris’ campaign started a reproductive freedom bus tour across battleground states earlier this month. The “Fighting for Reproductive Freedom” tour started in Palm Beach, Florida on Tuesday, Sept. 3 with Minnesota Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar, Republican strategist Ana Navarro, Harris-Walz campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez and reproductive rights storyteller Anya Cook.
The bus will make at least 50 stops in key states, hitting both blue and red communities. The talks will highlight Harris and Walz’s plan to restore the Roe v Wade protections as well as what Project 2025 agenda entails for abortion, birth control and IVF.
Trump has tried to distance himself from the project, claiming earlier this year that he had nothing to do with it and that some of its ideas were “ridiculous” and “abysmal.”
The Republican platform is pointing to the 14th Amendment in guaranteeing that “no person can be denied life or liberty without due process, and that the states are, therefore, free to pass laws protecting those rights.”
During his term as president, Trump confirmed a federal judge who was criticized by reproductive rights advocates for her vigorous opposition to abortion, surrogacy and IVF.
His running mate, Vance, voted against IVF protections. The bill, brought to Congress in June, was meant to protect and expand nationwide access to fertility treatment.
“Donald Trump’s own platform could effectively ban IVF and abortion nationwide. Trump lies as much if not more than he breathes, but voters aren’t stupid,” spokesperson Sarafina Chitika said. “Because Trump overturned Roe v. Wade, IVF is already under attack and women’s freedoms have been ripped away in states across the country. There is only one candidate in this race who trusts women and will protect our freedom to make our own health care decisions: Vice President Kamala Harris.”
Forgoing the filibuster has been a long-term mission for Harris, however. In 2022, she posted to X, formerly known as Twitter, that Roe v. Wade needs to be codified into law.
“If the filibuster gets in the way, the Senate needs to make an exception to get this done,” she posted.
