Former President Donald Trump has claimed that he played a significant role in overturning the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that guaranteed abortion rights across the country. However, he made wildly inaccurate statements about the court’s 2022 decision to rescind Roe, suggesting that it had universal support. Trump declared that “all legal scholars” wanted Roe to be ended, despite many legal scholars disagreeing and supporting the preservation of Roe. He also claimed that “everybody wanted it” in terms of abortion being left up to individual states, but polls consistently show that a majority of Americans did not want Roe terminated.
In response to Trump’s claims, legal scholars have spoken out to refute his assertions. Many legal scholars supported preserving Roe v. Wade and did not want it overturned. They emphasized that not all legal scholars were in agreement with Trump’s claim that everyone wanted Roe to be rescinded. Some scholars argued that Roe should have been written differently to expand protections, rather than being overturned and giving states the power to restrict access to abortion. The criticism from legal scholars who support reproductive justice focused on enhancing Roe’s protections, not ending them.
Despite Trump’s claims that “everybody” supported allowing states to determine abortion laws, opinion polls consistently show that most Americans wanted Roe preserved. Polls conducted by various organizations consistently found that a majority of respondents opposed the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. For example, a CNN poll, a Marquette Law School poll, an NBC News poll, and a Gallup poll all found high levels of opposition to the decision that rescinded Roe. These polls demonstrate that the American public did not support the idea of leaving abortion laws up to individual states.
Trump’s claims regarding legal scholars and public opinion on Roe v. Wade are inaccurate. While the former president has touted his role in overturning Roe, many legal scholars and polls show that there was support for preserving the decision. Legal scholars who support reproductive justice emphasized the importance of expanding protections rather than overturning Roe. Polls consistently found that a majority of Americans opposed the Supreme Court’s decision to rescind Roe and preferred to see abortion rights preserved. Trump’s claims of universal support for the decision to rescind Roe do not align with the reality of legal opinions and public attitudes on the issue.
