Kamala Harris is poised to make history on Thursday — when she will visit a Planned Parenthood clinic in Minnesota that performs abortions.
The appearance, confirmed by several insiders, serves as the latest leg of a cross-country tour by the vice president.
It comes as the 59-year-old has emerged as a fierce advocate for abortion rights, following the landmark Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade.
She has been the most outspoken advocate, ien the administration ever since, and started her ‘Fight for Reproductive Freedoms’ tour to reinforce that distinction.
With the general election just months away, she will become the first vice president to make such a visit, beating out all previous presidents.
The location of the clinic, meanwhile, has yet to be revealed — at a time when reproductive freedoms across the country remain more up in the air than ever.
Kamala Harris is poised to make history on Thursday — when she will visit a Planned Parenthood clinic in Minnesota that performs abortions.
The location of the clinic, meanwhile, has yet to be revealed — at a time when reproductive freedoms across the country remain more up in the air than ever. Pictured: A Planned Parenthood in Minneapolis
The planned visit was also confirmed by three sources who spoke to NBC News, who said Harris plans to tour the clinic and speak with health care providers.
The insiders familiar with the planning added how the Oakland native’s visit may also see her speak to patients.
The sources also stressed that Harris has been adamant her presence will not disrupt services being provided as she looks to highlight what her administration has done to try to preserve access to the controversial procedure.
The insider added that she can field questions from reporters, but only outside the as-yet-unnamed facility.
Meanwhile, conservative states continue to impose a number of restrictions in neighboring states, making Minnesota a sort of sanctuary for abortion seekers.
The flurry of legislation comes more than a year later the conservative-dominated Supreme Court overturned the landmark 1973 case, leading to protests across the country.
The ruling, made in the middle of Joe Biden’s inauguration, left states to their own devices, legally speaking.
As a result, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz last year signed legislation enshrining citizens’ abortion rights into state law after officials handed over the authority to regulate abortion laws to state representatives.
At the time of writing, 25 other states offer the same protections, though most of them are located along the coasts, leaving large swathes of America in the lurch.
It comes as the 59-year-old has emerged as a fierce advocate for abortion rights, following the landmark Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade.
Meanwhile, conservative states continue to impose a number of restrictions in neighboring states, making Minnesota a sort of sanctuary for abortion seekers
The rush to legislation comes more than a year after the conservative-dominated Supreme Court overturned the landmark 1973 case, which sparked protests across the country
The ruling, made in the middle of Joe Biden’s inauguration, left states to their own devices, legally speaking
As a result, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz last year signed legislation enshrining citizens’ abortion rights into state law after officials handed the authority to regulate abortion to state representatives
Republicans, meanwhile, have suffered repeated political losses on the abortion issue since Roe v. Wade was overturned, with Republican front-runner Donald Trump especially reluctant to speak publicly about the ban.
Opponents have thus argued that the decision unfairly affects disenfranchised people living in these regions.
The Society of Family Planning found that the average number of abortions in Minnesota increased by about 36 percent in the year following the Supreme Court decision.
Republicans, meanwhile, have suffered repeated political losses on the abortion issue since Roe v. Wade was overturned, with GOP front-runner Donald Trump especially reluctant to speak publicly about the federal abortion ban.
He has instead chosen to float the idea of an agreement between pro-life and pro-choice activists.
“I would sit down with both sides and I would negotiate something and we end up with peace on that issue for the first time in 52 years,” he said in an interview with NBC in September when asked about the issue.
In the same interview, Trump criticized Florida Governor Ron DeSantis for signing a six-week abortion ban when he was running against the former president for the Republican nomination.
“I think what he did is a terrible thing and a terrible mistake,” Trump said at the time.