TUCSON, AZ — To end a week in which Arizona's access to abortion was again severely restricted, Vice President Kamala Harris visited Tucson Friday to advocate for continued access to reproductive healthcare and abortion procedures.
Harris' 14-minute speech at a community center on Friday afternoon focused almost exclusively on abortion access and the upcoming general election rematch between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.
The vice president's visit comes three days after Arizona's Supreme Court ruled that a restrictive, near-total abortion ban enacted before Arizona's statehood could again be enforced. The ban from 1864 makes no exceptions for rape or incest and, unlike many other states, it does not allow a portion of the gestational period for women to make a decision about their pregnancy before getting an abortion. The only exception the ban allows is for abortions that would save the life of the mother. As a result, Arizona will soon have one of the most extreme abortion bans in the nation.
That ruling solidified in the minds of some politicians that the upcoming election would be a referendum on reproductive rights in the Grand Canyon State.
"What has happened here in Arizona is a new inflection point," Harris told the crowd, made up almost entirely of women. Adding at another point during the speech, "The overturning of Roe was without any question a seismic event, and this ban here in Arizona is one of the biggest aftershocks yet."
VP Harris visited Phoenix last month and spoke at a rally to promote reproductive rights.
See the March event in the video player below:
On Friday, Trump again took ownership for the landmark abortion ruling Roe vs Wade being overturned, a decision he said was made in an effort to give the issue back to the states.
"The states are working their way through it, and you're having some very, very beautiful harmony, to be honest with you," Trump told reporters in Florida.
Trump added that Roe being overturned is "working the way it's supposed to."
Minutes later in Arizona, Harris repeated Trump's message back to the crowd to boos.
"And as much harm as he has already caused," Harris continued, "a second Trump term would be even worse."
Harris was clear in placing the blame for Arizona's incoming ban on Trump.
"Now, Trump wants us to believe he will not sign a national ban," she said. "Enough with the gaslighting. Enough with the gaslighting."
The Democratic National Committee also hit on Trump's role, putting up a series of billboards around Arizona this week with the message "Abortion is banned in Arizona thanks to Donald Trump. He won't stop until it's banned nationwide."
The near-total abortion ban set to take effect in Arizona was not a decision made by the former president, but he did appoint three of the U.S. Supreme Court justices who overturned Roe. Without Roe in place, Arizona's current reality became possible.
"It has demonstrated, once and for all, that overturning Roe was just the opening act of a larger strategy to take women's rights and freedoms," Harris said. "Part of a full-on attack, state by state, on reproductive freedom."
Trump is one of a few Republicans - including U.S. Senate candidate Kari Lake, former Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, and members of the legislature - now changing their previous abortion stances by saying a near-total ban goes too far.
This week, nearly all Arizona House Republicans blocked two efforts from Democrats to vote to repeal the pre-statehood ban.
Trump was confident Friday that despite those efforts on Wednesday, Arizona's Republicans would be changing their tone in the future.
"A judge made a ruling, but that's going to be changed by government," Trump said. "They're going to be changing that."
Arizona's lawmakers will return to the Capitol next week. Democrats say they will continue to push for a vote on a repeal.
