President Joe Biden is wading deeper into the fight over abortion rights that has energized Democrats since the fall of Roe v. Wade, traveling to Florida to assail the state’s upcoming ban and similar restrictions that have imperiled access to care for pregnant women nationwide.

"Next week, one of the nation's most extreme antiabortion laws will take effect here in Florida. It's criminalizing reproductive health care for before women even know whether they're pregnant. I mean, this is bizarre," Biden said to an enthusiastic crowd in Tampa.

Tuesday's campaign visit to a former swing state that has become more reliably Republican in recent elections puts Biden in the epicenter of the latest battle over abortion restrictions.

The state’s sixweek abortion ban is poised to go into effect May 1 at the same time that Florida voters are gearing up for a ballot measure that would enshrine abortion rights in the state’s constitution.

Biden is seeking to capitalize on the unceasing momentum against abortion restrictions nationwide to not only buoy his reelection bid in battleground states he won in 2020, but also to go on the offensive against Donald Trump in states that the presumptive Republican nominee won four years ago.

"For 50 years, the court ruled that there was a fundamental constitutional right to privacy. But two years ago, that was taken away. Let's be real clear: There's one person responsible for this nightmare, and he's acknowledged and he brags about it: Donald Trump," Biden said.

Advocates on the ground say support for abortion access cuts across parties. They're intent on making the issue as nonpartisan as possible as they work to scrounge up at least 60% support from voters for the ballot initiative.

That could mean in some cases, Florida voters would split their tickets, backing GOP candidates while supporting the abortion measure.

Still, Biden sees a powerful message in the abortion issue, telling supporters at a later campaign stop he believes "Florida is in play nationally."

Read more: https://www.tampabay.com/news/florida...


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