WASHINGTON — Former first lady Melania Trump appears to be taking a different stance than her husband when it comes to abortion rights. In a video posted on social media last week, Melania Trump expressed her support for women’s “individual freedom.”

Abortion access is a key issue in this presidential election and one that has become politically harder for former President Donald Trump to navigate after his Supreme Court appointees allowed for the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Spectrum News previously examined where Vice President Kamala Harris stands on abortion rights, and this follow-up report looks at Trump's take.

What You Need To Know

  • Former President Donald Trump said he has no regrets over appointing the three justices that created the Supreme Court majority to overturn the constitutional right to an abortion

  • At one point, Trump suggested he would support a federal 15-week abortion restriction, but he has since reversed course, saying abortion law should be left up to the states

  • Some health law experts say it remains unclear where Trump stands exactly on issues such as access to contraception or medication abortion and the distribution of such drugs in the mail and those experts also point to proposals from Trump allies that could impact access
  • President Joe Biden reversed Trump's rules that barred organizations that provide abortion referrals from receiving federal family planning money, but health policy experts expect if Trump is elected he would put those rules back in place

Trump used to say he supported abortion rights, but in 2016, he campaigned on nominating justices that would overturn Roe v. Wade. When he was elected, that was exactly what he did. Those three appointees created the majority that ended the constitutional right to an abortion. Trump said he has no regrets.

“I’m just happy that we had Supreme Court justices that had the courage to do that,” Trump said at a campaign rally in Mosinee, Wisconsin.  

The end of Roe means accessing abortion depends on where you live. Trump said he personally believes there should be certain exceptions that go beyond what’s allowed in some states like Texas. 

“I believe in the exceptions for rape, incest and life of the mother. I believe strongly in it,” Trump said at the September presidential debate against Harris.

At one point, Trump suggested he would support a federal 15-week abortion restriction. 

“The number of weeks, now, people are agreeing on 15, and I’m thinking in terms of that,” Trump said in a radio interview in March with “Sid & Friends in the Morning.”

Trump has since reversed course, saying abortion law should be left up to the states. 

In a Truth Social post on October 1st, Trump wrote “EVERYONE KNOWS I WOULD NOT SUPPORT A FEDERAL ABORTION BAN, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, AND WOULD, IN FACT, VETO IT.” 

“It is now where it always had to be with the states and a vote of the people,” Trump said at a rally at Indiana, Pennsylvania, on Sept. 23.

In vitro fertilization became a big political issue this year after the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos can be considered children under state law. Trump vowed to protect IVF.

“Under the Trump administration, your government will pay for or your insurance company will be mandated to pay for all costs associated with IVF treatment, fertilization for women,” Trump said in August at a campaign rally at Potterville, Michigan.  

But Trump has not said how the plan would work or be paid for. 

“That is something that generally would require the involvement and support of Congress. That isn’t something you know, that isn’t something that a president can do individually, that would require federal legislation,” said Usha Ranji, the associate director for women’s health policy, KFF, a health policy research and news organization. 

Some health law experts say it remains unclear where Trump stands exactly on issues such as access to contraception or medication abortion and the distribution of such drugs in the mail. Those experts also point to proposals from Trump allies that could impact access. 

“He doesn’t want to say, ‘I will absolutely sign an abortion ban.’ He doesn’t have to, right? But if he appoints someone who is completely pro-life to the FDA, and he appoints someone who is completely, you know, pro-life, even to the Veterans Administration, right, it can impact what our veterans have access to,” said Carliss Chapman, associate professor of law at Southern Methodist University. 

During his first term, Trump barred organizations that provide abortion referrals from receiving federal family planning money.

“Even though the federal dollars have never been used for abortion care, they’re used purely for family planning care, (Trump) put a rule in that prohibited that. As a result, the network of clinics that was participating in the program really shrunk,” Ranji said. 

President Joe Biden reversed those changes, but health policy experts expect if Trump is elected, he would put those rules back in place.