US Election: Harris says Trump shouldn’t be telling women what to do with their bodies

Nevada: Democratic presidential candidate and US Vice President Kamala Harris took aim at Republican candidate Donald Trump’s positions on abortion and women’s rights during a rally in Nevada.

Harris emphasised the Democratic Party’s commitment to protecting personal freedoms, particularly a woman’s right to make decisions about her own body without the government’s interference.

“Ours is fighting for future and fight for freedom, like the fundamental freedom of women to make decisions about her own body and not have her government tell her what to do,” Harris stated.

She accused Trump of playing a direct role in the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe vs Wade by appointing justices specifically aimed at eliminating abortion protections.

“We all remember how we got here. When Donald Trump was President, he hand-picked three members of the US Supreme Court with the intention that they would do away with the protection of Roe vs Wade; they did as he intended. Now in America, one in three women lives in a state with a Trump Abortion Ban — many with no exception for rape and incest, which is immoral,” she said.

Harris also referenced Trump’s past remarks where he suggested that he would “do what he wants whether women like it or not,” arguing this demonstrates his lack of respect for women’s autonomy.

“This is the same person who said that women should be punished for their choices. The courts will handle this, and we will handle November. We know that the man simply does not respect the freedom or the intelligence of women to be able to make decisions about our own lives,” Harris continued.

She warned that Trump’s potential re-election could bring severe restrictions on reproductive rights, threatening access to birth control and IVF treatments and increasing surveillance of women’s pregnancies.

Harris cited ‘Project 2025,’ a Republican plan she claims could entail nationwide restrictions. “If you don’t believe me, just Google ‘Project 2025’ — I still can’t believe they put it in writing,” she noted.

“The government shouldn’t be telling her what to do; not the government and not Donald Trump,” she added.

Urging voters to support Democrats, Harris said, “To make your right heard and to protect your right to take care of your own healthcare decisions, I would also recommend you vote on Yes on question six and make sure you vote up and down on ballot to truly protect your rights.”

She assured supporters, “When Congress passes a bill restoring reproductive freedom nationwide, as the US President, I will proudly sign it into law.”

Harris also warned of threats to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), commonly known as Obamacare, should Trump win. She pointed out that Trump’s ally in Congress, the Speaker of the House, recently declared that there would be an ‘End to Obamacare’.

“The words he used were no Obamacare, which, if he were to get his way, if Trump wins, means they would throw millions of Americans off the health insurance and take us back, which would take us back to when, you’ll remember, insurance companies have the ability to deny people with pre-existing conditions,” Harris added.

With Election Day looming on November 5, Harris and Trump are in the final push of one of the most intense presidential races, with polls showing them locked in a tight battle.

IANS