The Biden campaign is set to air its first abortion-focused advertisement of the year in key battleground states. The ad features a poignant testimony from a woman personally affected by a state abortion ban, attributing the blame directly to former President Donald Trump.
This move comes as the campaign initiates a comprehensive push this week to foreground abortion rights in the 2024 race. The campaign will host events led by President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. This marks the campaign’s inaugural organized effort to highlight the issue, aiming to rally voters around reproductive rights in the first presidential election following the Supreme Court’s termination of the federal constitutional right to an abortion.
The new TV spot, “Forced,” is part of the campaign’s strategy to portray Trump as a direct threat to democracy, following Biden’s intensified attacks against Trump in the early weeks of the year. The ad anticipates Trump’s potential plans and positions ahead of a possible face-off in November.
The minute-long ad features a heartfelt testimonial from Dr. Austin Dennard, a Texas OB-GYN and mother who had to leave her state, which enforces a strict abortion ban, to terminate her pregnancy after discovering her fetus had a fatal condition. Dennard describes the situation as “every woman’s worst nightmare” and criticizes Trump for the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
The ad will start airing on Monday in seven battleground states and nationally during the season premiere of ABC’s “The Bachelor.” The campaign aims to reach suburban women and young voters by airing the ad on channels like HGTV, TLC, Bravo, Hallmark, Food Network, and Oxygen. A 30-second version of the ad will simultaneously air on digital platforms, including YouTube.
The Biden campaign plans to use the 51st anniversary of Roe v. Wade this week to emphasize reproductive rights as a central issue of the campaign. Harris will kick off a reproductive freedoms tour in Wisconsin, a battleground state Democrats are aiming to defend.
The Biden campaign and White House have been actively pushing back on state abortion bans since the Dobbs decision. Biden has taken some executive actions relating to abortion access, contraception, and states passing abortion restrictions, but these actions have been limited, highlighting the challenges he faces in acting independently.
Senior Biden campaign officials believe that ads featuring personal testimonies from Americans deeply resonate with voters. In the wake of the Dobbs decision, some Democrats have crafted ads featuring emotional and personal stories about abortion, including a powerful ad in Kentucky’s gubernatorial race.
Dr. Dennard, a mother of three, has shared her story in a Texas courthouse, in congressional hearings, and at the White House, where she met with first lady Jill Biden last summer. Her fetus was diagnosed with anencephaly, a condition in which the brain and skull of a fetus don’t completely form, posing a significant threat to pregnant patients.
“No woman in America should have to risk their life or flee their home to receive life-saving care, but because of Donald Trump, too many have been forced to do exactly that,” said Chavez Rodriguez, Biden’s campaign manager. “This ad serves as a sobering reminder to women across the country of the devastating legacy of Donald Trump’s presidency.”
Contributors: CNN’s Ashley Killough and Ed Lavandera