Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D-MI) linked abortion to the economy in a Tuesday interview on MSNBC’s Morning Joe in an effort to connect some strong feelings about economic issues with women’s reproductive rights.
The economy has universally been regarded by voters as the most important issue this election cycle, though Democrats have continued to hammer abortion as a primary item in their agenda. Republican candidates are regularly viewed as better choices to handle the economy, while Democrats are more often picked as favorites to tackle questions about abortion.
“I would submit that abortion is about the economy too,” Whitmer said when asked about how Vice President Kamala Harris’s campaign is addressing the economy.
“The most important profound decision a person or family or woman will make is whether and when to bear a child. This is about our personal economy … our collective economy. How can women get in the workforce if they can’t make their own decisions about whether and when to bear a child or access healthcare?” the governor said.
Whitmer was discussing Harris’s new reproductive rights bus tour in Florida, with the first stop being Palm Beach, Florida — former President Donald Trump’s hometown. Harris is attempting to strike a contrast with Trump on the increasingly important topic of abortion.
Trump himself has softened his stance on abortion this cycle in response to voters in both parties who have deemed it more important. But the economy has consistently ranked as the most important topic, given rising inflation and higher prices for consumer goods.
In a poll conducted by the Economist, 74% of voters said the economy was a “very important” subject for them, compared to 71% for healthcare and 47% for abortion.
But Whitmer’s statement looks to link issues voters have generally trusted Harris with more, healthcare and abortion, with a subject voters have generally trusted Trump with more: the economy. Harris voters were more likely to say abortion was an important issue than Trump voters in the poll, while Trump voters pointed to the economy more often.
It’s a strategy that Democrats haven’t often used to motivate voters concerned about the economy, but it could serve to move some financially concerned voters who haven’t been moved as much by social issues and healthcare matters.
Whitmer went on to say in the interview that Trump “wants to rip these rights away” but that Harris “wants to give women greater access” to abortions. She bolstered her economic argument by citing that Trump’s proposed tariffs on foreign goods “will cripple the American consumer.”
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Whitmer, a Harris campaign surrogate and the governor of swing-state Michigan, said she “will go anywhere and talk to anyone on any subject, especially on something as important as this upcoming election.”
Several states have abortion on the ballot this fall, including New York, which has several critical House races. Democrats have recently panicked about the ballot measure, citing conservative attacks that could move voters.