(Bloomberg) — President Joe Biden pledged to codify abortion protections into federal law with his first bill in a new Congress, as he looks to rally voters for Democrats three weeks before the November midterms.
Most Read from Bloomberg
“The first bill that I will send to the Congress will be to codify Roe v. Wade,” Biden said Tuesday at a Democratic National Committee event in Washington. “And when Congress passes it, I’ll sign it in January, 50 years after Roe was first decided the law of the land.”
Biden’s promise, however, hinges on his party at least holding the House and making gains in the Senate. It’s looking doubtful that Democrats can manage both. Polls show it’s unlikely they hang onto the House, while Senate races in key states, including Pennsylvania and Ohio, are tightening.
Biden acknowledged Democrats will need more votes in Congress and urged supporters to turn out to the polls.
“Right now, we’re short a handful of votes. If you care about the right to choose then you got to vote,” the president said.
“I want you to remember that the final say does not rest in the court now. It does not rest with extremist Republicans in Congress,” Biden added. “It rests with you. And if you do your part and vote, Democratic leaders in Congress, I promise you, we’ll do our part. I’ll do my part.”
Democrats saw a bump in polls following the Supreme Court’s decision in June to overturn the landmark 1973 Roe ruling, though there are signs it’s leveling off. A poll published Monday by the New York Times and Siena College found independent women voters swinging toward Republicans, an indication that economic woes are overshadowing abortion in those voters’ minds.
Biden and Democrats have campaigned heavily against the court’s move, which has opened the door to a flood of abortion restrictions and bans in Republican-controlled states.
The president at an event in September warned of the threat that he said House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy’s agenda would pose, should the GOP win control of the chamber. The GOP document said Republicans “will protect the lives of unborn children and their mothers.”
Biden has also assailed Senator Lindsey Graham’s proposed legislation that would prohibit abortions nationwide after 15 weeks of pregnancy, with some exceptions.
He again called out McCarthy and Graham by name Tuesday.
“If Republicans get their way with a national ban, it won’t matter where you live in America,” he Tuesday.
The president, a practicing Roman Catholic, has been reluctant to discuss abortion in the past and has at times relied on Vice President Kamala Harris and others to rally voters on the issue.
The administration is also taking steps to minimize the impact of the court’s move. Biden created a task force on the matter, and the Department of Education issued new guidance this month requiring universities to protect students who terminate their pregnancies from discrimination.
Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek
©2022 Bloomberg L.P.
