What does Project 2025 Say About Reproductive Rights?
Project 2025, the conservative agenda mapped out by Trump’s allies and team members, aims to significantly restrict reproductive rights across the United States.
Project 2025 won’t just restrict abortion; contraception and IVF, which a vast majority of Americans support, are also on the line.
The budget includes provisions that could block funding for emergency medical treatment for pregnant women, restrict abortion training, and eliminate key family planning programs such as IVF and contraception. Prominent conservative groups like the Heritage Foundation and Alliance Defending Freedom are shaping these policies, with proposals to increase surveillance on abortion and limit contraception access. These plans involve enforcing outdated laws to criminalize abortion and ban life-saving research.
Project 2025’s comprehensive strategy also includes creating a "Department of Life" to promote anti-abortion policies at the federal level and dismantling the current administration’s initiatives aimed at protecting reproductive healthcare access.
MAGA-aligned Senators already voted to block the Right to Contraception Act in June 2024 and the Right to IVF in July 2024, laying the groundwork for contraception and IVF bans around the country.
What did Trump & Biden Say About Reproductive Rights at the Debate?
During the June 2024 presidential debate, President Joe Biden held former President Donald Trump accountable for the surge of state abortion restrictions following the fall of Roe v. Wade. As president, Trump appointed three justices to the U.S. Supreme Court, forming the majority that overturned the constitutional right to abortion—a move he has proudly claimed credit for during his campaign, despite most Americans supporting abortion access.
Highlighting Trump’s pivotal role in overturning Roe v. Wade and its detrimental impact on pregnant individuals across the U.S. has become a central theme in Biden’s campaign. He has warned that a second Trump term could lead to nationwide abortion restrictions. He also pledged to restore the protections under Roe if re-elected.
Trump, on the debate stage, stated that he supports exceptions for rape, incest, and the life of the mother. However, these exceptions are currently under scrutiny. Recently, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on a case involving Idaho’s abortion ban, which allows abortions to save the life of the mother but not to save her health. This has left women in medical emergencies without options, spotlighting the harsh realities of restrictive abortion laws.
Consequences of Restricted Reproductive Rights
There are real-world consequences of these policies. More restrictive, states-rights approaches to abortion have led to inconsistent access to reproductive care. Contrary to claims that these approaches allow “the people” to decide abortion access, about half the states do not allow direct voter input through citizen-led ballot measures. In states where such measures are possible, abortion rights coalitions face fierce opposition from anti-abortion groups aiming to block reproductive rights initiatives.
In the past two years, voters in seven states, including conservative strongholds like Kentucky, Montana, and Ohio, have either upheld abortion rights or rejected efforts to limit them in statewide votes.
Republican legislators’ opposition to birth control might also alienate voters: 9 in 10 Americans believe birth control should be legal, yet Republican senators voted to block a bill that would have protected the right to birth control. 90% of Republicans support the right to birth control, but only 2 Republican senators voted for the Right to Contraception Act in June.
The vast majority of Americans also believe that in vitro fertilization (IVF) should be legal. Close to 4 in 5 Americans support legislation protecting IVF. Yet again, just 2 Republican senators voted for the Right to IVF bill in June.
This demonstrates a disconnect between extremist policies and the will of the people.