Kamala Harris becomes first VP or president to visit an abortion clinic: Slams ‘extremist’ elected leaders who think they can ‘tell women what they need’ during tour of Minnesota Planned Parenthood

Vice President Kamala Harris made history when she reportedly became the first president or vice president to visit an abortion clinic Thursday, as the fight over abortion rights took center stage since the overturning of Roe v Wade.

Harris met with abortion providers and staff at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Minneapolis, Minnesota as part of a nationwide tour she took after the landmark decision was declared in 2022.

The vice president was fierce defender of abortion rights within the Biden administration, as the issue has proven to be a strong motivator for voters and is expected to be one of the top issues for Democrats ahead of the November elections.

“Many of you have asked why I am here in this facility in particular and I will tell you that it is because we are facing a very serious health crisis in our country right now, and the crisis is affecting many people in our country, most of whom, frankly, we are suffering quietly,” Harris said during her visit.

This was Harris’ sixth stop in her “Fight for Reproductive Freedoms” tour, which kicked off in Wisconsin in January to mark the 51st anniversary of Roe.

“In states across our country, extremists have proposed and passed laws that would deny women access to reproductive health care,” Harris said.

She then criticized elected leaders who “believe they are in a better position to tell women what they need.”

Harris speaks with Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Dr. Sarah Traxler while visiting an abortion clinic in Minneapolis

Harris speaks to reporters after touring the abortion clinic in Minnesota

Harris said she was at the clinic to “elevate” the work in Minnesota as an example of true leadership. She said when she talks about a clinic like the one she visited, it’s “absolutely about health care and reproductive health care.”

“Everyone get ready for the language: womb. That part of the body needs a lot of medical care from time to time. Problems like fibroids, we can handle this. Breast cancer screenings, contraceptive care. That’s the kind of work that’s happening here in addition to abortion care,” Harris said.

During her visit Thursday, Harris was accompanied by Democratic Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Congresswoman Betty McCollum.

After Roe fell, the Biden administration took several executive actions to help protect access to abortion and the medications used for abortions, but their efforts have been limited.

President Biden has also called on Congress to pass legislation that would codify Roe and protect abortion rights nationwide, but Democrats have not had the necessary support in Congress to pass a bill.

The White House and the Biden campaign have been addressing the issue ahead of the 2024 election. The re-election campaign began earlier this year with ads featuring a woman who had left the state to have an emergency abortion.

Kate Cox, who went to court to get permission to have an abortion in Texas, was a guest of First Lady Jill Biden during the president’s State of the Union address last week.

President Biden has criticized his Republican opponent, former President Donald Trump, calling him the reason Roe v Wade was overturned after Trump nominated three of the justices who supported the Dobbs decision.

“If you, the American people, send me a Congress that supports the right to choose, I promise you I will restore Roe v. Wade as the law of the land,” Biden said during his State of the Union address .

Harris thanked the clinic staff. She said their work is ‘absolutely about healthcare’

President Biden promised during his State of the Union address that he would sign a bill that would codify Roe v Wade into law if Americans sent him a Congress that could pass the legislation

Harris with Sarah Traxler, chief medical officer of Planned Parenthood North Central States

Harris arrives in Minneapolis ahead of her tour of an abortion clinic

Abortion rights have been a major issue for Democrats since Roe v Wade was overturned in 2022

Minnesota is one of several blue states that moved to strengthen abortion rights after Roe fell, while red states have passed numerous laws that further restrict abortion or ban it altogether.

In January of last year, Governor Walz signed a law enshrining abortion rights in the state and strengthening other reproductive health care protections.

It was the first state after the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision to return the issue to states to take legislative protective measures.

Minnesota, which is bordered by four states with abortion bans, has also become a haven in recent years for women seeking abortions from other states.

The Society for Family Planning, a research organization, found that the average number of abortions in the state increased 36 percent the year after the decision.

Dr. Sarah Traxler, the chief medical officer at Planned Parenthood North Central States, accompanied Harris during her visit. Traxler discussed how she had helped patients from all over the country, including patients as far away as Texas.

The anti-abortion group SBA Pro-Life America denounced the vice president ahead of her visit, saying Harris had spent her “entire career in the pocket of Big Abortion.”

Later this month, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in another high-profile case in the abortion battle. It questions whether patients have access to mifepristone, a pill commonly used for abortions across the country.