The billionaire business mogul who provided former President Donald Trump with the massive bond required to appeal his case in New York says he might not have charged the former head-of-state a good price.

Don Hankey is the chairman of Knight Specialty Insurance, the company that supplied the $175 million bond required by Trump’s New York civil fraud trial.

Hankey told Reuters in an interview that he did not charge Trump a high fee for the financial service, saying he believed it was a small risk.

‘We thought it would be an easy procedure that wouldn’t involve other legal problems and it’s not turning out that way. We probably didn’t charge enough,’ Hankey told the outlet.

The billionaire — who supported Trump in 2016 and is backing his re-election — said he has faced intense scrutiny from New York Attorney General Letitia James’ office and other officials.

Hankey told Reuters, ‘We have been getting a lot of emails, a lot of phone calls. Maybe that’s part of the reason he had trouble with other insurance companies.’

‘I’m surprised they’re coming down harder on our bond or looking for reasons to cause issues with our instrument,’ he added.

Trump’s bond was initially set at a staggering $454 million, a value so high he struggled to find firms willing to take on the risk.

Hankey — believed to be worth over $7 billion dollars — approached the Trump campaign about rendering financial services before the bond was reduced to $175 million.

The billionaire said Trump provided collateral for the bond in cash held by a brokerage firm.

‘I don’t know if it came from Donald Trump or from Donald Trump and supporters,’ Hankey said.

Jury selection for the civil fraud trial is expected to begin on April 15.

By forming the Supreme Court majority that would finally reverse Roe v. Wade and restore the right of the people and their elected representatives to protect unborn children and their mothers in the law, President Trump can truly be called the most consequential pro-life president in history. The role of his leadership in creating the life-saving opportunity the pro-life movement spent 50 years working and praying for will never be forgotten.

Since the 2022 midterms, however, a narrative has taken hold that the life issue costs Republicans elections and is better left to the states, anyway – a narrative that threatens this great accomplishment. With policy platforms suddenly having very real consequences, many candidates became fearful, listened to consultants and opted for the ‘ostrich strategy’ of burying their heads in the sand. These candidates fared badly. The left also struck back and found success in spending massive sums of money to rewrite the constitutions in pro-life states, leaving pro-life advocates outgunned on resources.

Now, in the midst of the 2024 campaign, President Trump’s long-awaited announcement of his stance tragically pigeonholes abortion as a matter of states’ rights. It has met with disappointment from the pro-life community and the millions of Americans who are looking for a national leader who can build consensus and stand up to the pro-abortion extremism of Joe Biden and congressional Democrats.

It would be a disaster to cede a winnable fight to Biden and the radically pro-abortion Democrats, who unapologetically push their extreme agenda on every American. We can’t quit working to defeat them in the battleground states that will decide control of the White House and Congress, and the SBA Pro-Life America team remains focused on reaching 10 million voters – four million at their doors. As always, the key to changing hearts, minds and votes is contrast with the Democrat Party position of abortion any time for any reason.

The historic Dobbs decision laid the groundwork for protecting women and unborn children from abortion brutality in this country by allowing both states and Congress to act. In response, states across the country have enacted pro-life laws that recognize the dignity of human life in the womb while also guarding the health and safety of women.

At the same time, the national conversation must continue. The geography of where you live shouldn’t determine whether you live. Post-Dobbs, a majority of Americans (seven in ten) support significant limits on painful second and third trimester abortions.  This consensus view is consistent with that of most European nations, with 47 out of 50 limiting abortions by the point when babies can feel excruciating pain. President Trump and the GOP should embrace and fight for this consensus – not abandon the fight nationally. Embracing this position is both smart policy and smart politics.

Biden’s pro-abortion extremism will not stop at state lines. Biden and national Democrats have made it clear that they stand for abortion on demand any time and for any reason, including abortion drugs by mail without so much as a doctor visit. They are already spending millions to fearmonger and lie about the Republican position on abortion, while failing to define any abortion limits of their own.

If Biden and Democrats gain complete control of Washington this November and their extreme abortion policies are enacted in law, state-level protections for life supported by the majority of the people of those states will be wiped out. Moreover, most women who’ve had abortions wish they’d had more help to keep their babies, and many of them suffer in silence – but the Democrats refuse to acknowledge the number of abortions that result from pressure and coercion. If Biden’s abortion-on-demand agenda becomes the law of the land, an even more onerous burden will fall on them and their babies as the Democrats work to shut down pregnancy resource centers and funnel women toward the abortion industry, with its one ‘solution’ to unplanned pregnancy: ending the life of the child.

The lives of countless women and unborn children in this country are at stake, and they are worth fighting for. They deserve national protections and national pro-life leadership, not allowing pro-abortion extremists to determine the direction and future of our country.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., is planning to devote much of his energy in the remaining months of his term as Republican leader, as well as the next few years of his term, to ensuring Ukraine is supported as its war with Russia rages on. 

‘It may not be fashionable now, but I’m a Ronald Reagan Republican: peace through strength,’ the longtime Senate GOP leader said during a speech in Shelbyville, Kentucky, per local outlet the Kentucky Lantern.

McConnell has been a proponent of continued support for Ukraine, even after members of his party began to push back. 

‘Mitch McConnell is a Reagan Republican through and through,’ said Republican strategist Doug Heye. Therefore, its unsurprising that he is ‘standing strong on those principles,’ he said.

But not everyone equates Ukraine support with republicanism in the image of former President Reagan. According to Republican strategist Matt Dole, ‘Reagan republicanism, or any label that is historical in nature, is not driven by one issue or one vote.’

He posited that such labels have been used by some ‘as a way to encourage people to their side.’

‘I don’t think a senator voting for or against aid to the Ukraine takes them closer or further away from the legacy of Ronald Reagan,’ he added. 

Speaking to a local radio station last week, McConnell said Ukraine and preventing Russia’s advances would be ‘the main part of my focus in the coming years.’ 

He said Ukraine’s war presents ‘a worldwide problem for democracies.’ 

‘McConnell understands the long game that Russia is playing,’ explained Republican strategist Ron Bonjean, former top spokesperson to former Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott and former chief of staff of the Senate Republican Conference. 

According to Grant Reeher, professor of political science at Syracuse University, it’s likely that McConnell ‘really believes in the importance of standing up to Putin and preserving the integrity of Ukraine’s sovereignty, and wants to have that as his ‘last act.” 

At the same time, ‘it would be a moment of statesmanship that would also help frame the way he is remembered’ as McConnell and his generation pass the baton, Reeher said.

McConnell said during his radio interview that Ukraine’s fate is a global issue and that ‘they need our leadership, and we need their partnership.’

He also decried the growing wave of ‘isolationist’ sentiment among his Republican colleagues. He acknowledged his fellow Kentuckian, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., as one of those perpetuating the movement. 

Paul’s office was contacted by Fox News Digital but did not provide comment.

‘A growing number of his colleagues are now looking at Ukraine through a populist outlook of how sending foreign aid abroad helps their constituents back home,’ explained Bonjean. 

However, McConnell’s focus toward Ukraine may be rendered unsuccessful ‘unless there is a concerted effort to make the connection between sending foreign aid to Ukraine and protecting American interests,’ he said.

Without this, the leader’s anti-isolationism campaign may ‘be a losing fight over time.’

Dole also noted the leader’s ‘influence immediately waned upon his announcement that he intended to step down.’ This, in part, will make it hard to unify the conference on ‘an issue that they’ve always disagreed about.’

McConnell revealed his decision to step down from the role of party leader in November after his term in the position ends. His stepping aside presents an opportunity for the Senate GOP to select a new leader and potentially chart a far different path. 

The Kentucky Republican is the longest-serving party leader in Senate history, having maintained the title since his election in 2007. 

Dole further disputed the idea that Republicans have shifted toward isolationism, instead suggesting that the divided stances on Ukraine aid represent ‘discernment.’

‘McConnell has earned the right to try to convince the caucus of his position,’ he said, but added, ‘His last battle will be uphill.’

John Mark Hansen, the Charles L. Hutchinson distinguished service professor and interim chair for the department of political science at the University of Chicago, echoed that ‘isolationism never really went away, particularly among the electorate.’

Instead, Hansen said, what has occurred is a Republican retreat from ‘support for NATO and defense against Russian expansionism.’ This is due to former President Trump’s influence, he said.

‘I don’t think it’s something the base feels strongly about,’ he said. Therefore, McConnell is in a better position ‘to make a stand.’

‘He’s not alone. Speaker [Mike] Johnson is clearly willing to take a risk in supporting aid for Ukraine,’ Hansen said. 

‘Isolationism may be en vogue right now, but peace through strength and not abandoning our allies are principles still shared among a lot of the Republican Party, including many of McConnell’s conference colleagues,’ Heye said. 

A $95 billion supplemental bill with aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan passed the upper chamber in February with 70 votes in support. However, nearly all the 29 votes against the measure were Republicans, highlighting the divided conference.

The Senate minority leader has called on the House to similarly pass the measure.

McConnell’s office did not provide comment to Fox News Digital.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is defending a 2009 decision that allows Chinese nationals to enter U.S. territory without a visa based on a perceived ‘significant public benefit,’ while Republicans blast the ‘loophole’ as a way for members of the Chinese Communist Party to ‘infiltrate’ the United States and put national security at risk.

DHS penned a letter to Republican Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, and Rep. Neal Dunn, R-Fla., in response to their request for information about the influx of Chinese immigration to U.S. territory Guam. Republican lawmakers have warned that influx poses a risk to national security due to the U.S. military bases on the island. 

Guam hosts Naval Base Guam, the Navy’s only submarine base in the western Pacific, as well as Anderson Air Force Base, which is large enough to host U.S. strategic bombers and fighters.

The lawmakers have been calling for the Biden administration to close what they call a ‘visa loophole’ that they view as ‘exacerbating’ the issue of illegal immigration to Guam from China.

But DHS is defending the policy that protects the so-called loophole.

‘As you note, a foreign citizen generally must obtain a visa to enter the United States, including its territories,’ wrote Zephranie Buetow, DHS’s assistant secretary for legislative affairs. ‘However, Public Law 110-229, the Consolidated Natural Resources Act of 2008 (CNRA), established the Guam-Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) Visa Waiver Program codified at Immigration and Nationality Act § 212(l).’

‘The CNRA requires DHS to identify countries from which the CNMI receives a ‘significant economic benefit’ from the number of visitors for pleasure within the year preceding enactment,’ Buetow continued, adding that DHS determined that the People’s Republic of China (PRC) ‘met this economic threshold in 2009.’ 

Buetow, citing the policy, said that PRC nationals ‘may travel’ to Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands ‘without a visa for the purpose of a temporary visit for business or pleasure for up to 14 days.’ 

Buetow said those PRC nationals ‘are not authorized for employment.’

‘Individuals without a visa are not authorized to travel to other parts of the United States, including Guam,’ Buetow wrote, adding that when they are encountered at CNMI airports, U.S. Customs and Border Protection ‘will prohibit their onward travel to other U.S. destinations.’ 

Buetow added, ‘DHS remains vigilant in its screening and vetting duties, which focus on rooting out exploitation of our immigrant and nonimmigrant visa processes, including by identifying, and where necessary denying entry to, high-risk travelers.’ 

But Republican lawmakers are blasting the Biden administration for keeping the ‘loophole’ in place. 

‘The Biden administration shamefully defends an outdated immigration policy while our national security is on the line,’ Ernst told Fox News Digital. ‘Allowing our military base and national secrets in Guam to remain at risk shows just how seriously this president takes the threat of China.’

Ernst told Fox News Digital that the Chinese Communist Party ‘has already proven they will stop at nothing to infiltrate the United States, and that threat is increasing every day as Chinese nationals use a visa loophole to gain access to our critical military installations in Guam.’

‘We must change this visa policy and put an end to Chinese nationals accessing our homeland for any malign activity,’ she said. 

And Dunn slammed DHS, saying the agency responded ‘with willful ignorance of ongoing national security concerns.’ 

‘They confirmed that the current statute allows Chinese nationals to enter the commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands for 14 days visa-free; however, they fail to see why it’s critical that we must implement the requirement of a B-1/B-2 visa to enter the CMNI to successfully deter the Chinese Communist Party’s aggression and transnational repression,’ Dunn told Fox News Digital. ‘Law enforcement does an outstanding job capturing those with ill-intent, but look how DHS handles our border crisis.’ 

He added, ‘We cannot risk the same thing occurring in the CNMI.’

The comments come amid separate concerns about an increase in Chinese nationals arriving at the U.S. border illegally. That number has surged more than 6,300% in recent years, further fueling national security fears that came back into focus last week when a Chinese immigrant was detained at a Marine base in California.

There have been 22,233 encounters of Chinese nationals crossing illegally at the northern and southern border so far in fiscal 2024, which began in October. That means this year is likely to significantly exceed last year’s total of 24,125.

That figure was itself a massive increase over the previous two years. There were just 342 apprehensions of Chinese nationals in fiscal 2021 and 1,987 in fiscal 2022, according to Customs and Border Protection data.

Fox News Digital has reached out to DHS for comment.

The Democratic National Committee is accusing RFK Jr.’s presidential campaign of acknowledging its role as a ‘spoiler’ in November after a woman associated with the campaign was captured on video discussing campaign strategy.

‘The only way that Trump can even, remote possibility of taking New York is if Bobby is on the ballot,’ a self identified Kennedy campaign staffer, told a room of Republicans in New York in a video reviewed by Fox News Digital.

‘If it’s Trump vs. Biden, Biden wins. Biden wins six days, seven days a week. With Bobby in the mix, anything can happen.’

‘How do we block Biden from winning the presidency?’ Palma said at another point in the video. ‘Again, that’s the number one priority for me.’

Palma, who said she voted for Trump in 2016 and 2020, explained that the ‘Kennedy voter and the Trump voter both consider Biden ‘our mutual enemy.’

Palma outlined a strategy based on the idea that Republicans have ‘accepted the fact’ that ‘most of the northeast states’ are ‘going to go blue’ so if New Yorkers ‘give those 28 electoral votes to Bobby rather than to Biden’ it would reduce Biden’s chance to get to the 270 votes needed to win the presidency and sent the decision to Congress where Trump would likely be picked so ‘we’re rid of Biden either way.’

The DNC quickly released a statement suggesting this video, which was first reported on by CNN, was further proof that RFK Jr.’s campaign is an effort to spoil the election for Biden, a charge Democrats have been consistently throwing at Kennedy and that have intensified in recent weeks.

‘RFK Jr.’s campaign is saying the quiet part out loud: he is a spoiler for Donald Trump,’ the press release from the Democrats argued. 

‘RFK Jr. was recruited into this race by Trump allies, his candidacy is propped up by Trump’s largest donor, and now his own staff admits that their number one goal in this election is stopping Joe Biden. As the saying goes, when people show you who they are, believe them: RFK Jr.’s campaign isn’t building a plan or a strategy to get 270 electoral votes, they’re building one to help Trump return to the Oval Office.’ 

In a statement to Fox News Digital, the Kennedy campaign downplayed Palma’s role from a strategy standpoint.

‘As an Independent movement, our supporters, volunteers, and field organizers come from all sides of the political spectrum and their reasons for supporting Mr. Kennedy are as disparate as their backgrounds,’ the statement said. 

‘Rita Palma is a ballot access consultant responsible for scheduling volunteer shifts for our upcoming signature collection drive in the Empire State. She is not involved in electoral strategy, nationally or in New York. This was not a campaign event. Palma was speaking as a private citizen and her statements in no way reflect the strategy of the Kennedy campaign, which is to win the White House with votes from former Trump and Biden supporters alike.’

Recent polls have shown Kennedy, Stein and independent candidate Dr. Cornel West would pull significant support from both Biden and Trump, but with Biden appearing to be at risk of losing the most potential votes.

‘Bobby, right now, he’s pulling from both sides right now,’ Palma said in the video.  ‘He’s actually pulling a little bit more from Biden, which explains why the DNC is kind of ganging up on him.’

In a Truth Social post last month, Trump made the case that Kennedy’s candidacy helps the MAGA agenda because of Kennedy’s ‘radical’ record. 

‘RFK Jr. is the most Radical Left Candidate in the race, by far,’ Trump wrote. ‘He’s a big fan of the Green New Scam, and other economy killing disasters. I guess this would mean he is going to be taking votes from Crooked Joe Biden, which would be a great service to America.’

‘His running mate, Nicole Shanahan, is even more ‘Liberal’ than him, if that’s possible. Kennedy is a Radical Left Democrat, and always will be!!! It’s great for MAGA, but the Communists will make it very hard for him to get on the Ballot. Expect him, and her, to be indicted any day now, probably for Environmental Fraud! He is Crooked Joe Biden’s Political Opponent, not mine. I love that he is running!’

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., noted the need for the Senate to take action on TikTok in a floor speech on Monday, emphasizing to his colleagues that ‘America’s greatest strategic rival is threatening our security right here on U.S. soil in tens of millions of American homes.’

‘This is a matter that deserves Congress’ urgent attention,’ he said. ‘And I’ll support commonsense, bipartisan steps to take one of Beijing’s favorite tools of coercion and espionage off the table.’

McConnell’s remarks on the popular social media app, which is under scrutiny due to its ownership by Chinese company Bytedance, came after legislation to force the sale of the company to a non-Chinese entity passed the House with an overwhelming and bipartisan majority last month.

Only one member abstained when the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, introduced in the House by Reps. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., and Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., passed, 352-65. 

When the bill arrived in the Senate, it was referred to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation for a markup rather than expedited for passage as some had hoped. The process and timeline the bill now faces are unclear, as committee Chair Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., has expressed the intention to hold public hearings on the issue. 

McConnell joins a number of other senators calling for urgent action on the bill, including Senate Intel committee Chair Mark Warner, D-Va.

However, with Schumer’s decision not to immediately take the bill to the floor for a vote, and Cantwell’s plan for hearings, it appears unlikely that their desired quick action will take place. 

The Senate minority leader also addressed an argument made by several of his Republican colleagues regarding the TikTok bill, slamming the suggestion that it violates the First Amendment.

‘This isn’t a debate about restricting speech,’ McConnell said.

‘The question we’ll face is about conduct, not content,’ he said. 

And according to McConnell, ‘Requiring the divestment of Beijing-influenced entities from TikTok would land squarely within established constitutional precedent.’

Former Vice President Mike Pence is concerned that a bipartisan effort to force popular social media app TikTok to cut ties with China will fall victim to presidential politics ahead of the November election, which promises to be fiercely competitive. 

‘I am concerned that this vitally important national security measure could be caught up in the delays in the United States Senate and ultimately be lost in the fog of presidential politics,’ he told Fox News Digital in an interview, referencing the upcoming November election that is expected to be a rematch between former President Trump and President Biden.

Pence’s organization, Advancing American Freedom, is spearheading a campaign to push a bill through Congress and to Biden’s desk that would require TikTok to either divest from Chinese-owned company Bytedance or see itself banned in the U.S. His effort includes a multimillion-dollar ad buy in Washington, D.C., and several states aimed at pressuring Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and other key senators to get the legislation to the finish line. 

The $2 million ad started running in the nation’s capital on Sunday, and Pence previewed to Fox News Digital that it would also run at a later date ‘in a number of states around the country,’ including Montana, Ohio, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. 

‘We’ll be not only calling on people to call Schumer, but also to call the relevant Democrat senators in those states to urge them also to step forward in support of forcing the sale of TikTok and bringing this matter to the floor to a vote and to final passage,’ he said. 

According to the former vice president and former 2024 presidential candidate, TikTok ‘represents a profound compromise of the privacy of millions of Americans and creates an opportunity for the Chinese Communist Party to collect data on tens of millions of Americans that could be exploited in the future.’ 

Pence noted that it is ‘perhaps even more perilous’ that TikTok has been able to establish an ‘unprecedented, propaganda platform for an adversarial nation in the United States.’

Part of Pence’s worry about swift action on the bill is born out of his own experience in Congress. ‘My concern, having spent 12 years in the House of Representatives, is that not a whole lot gets done after Memorial Day during a presidential election year.’

But he explained that TikTok’s data collection and connection to China present too urgent a threat to put off. 

The bill, introduced by House China Select Committee Chair Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., and ranking member Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., passed the lower chamber with a bipartisan vote of 352-65. 

Once it reached the Senate, it was referred to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, rather than being expedited for floor consideration as some had hoped.  

Pence said he discussed the bill and its path in the Senate with Gallagher, who he said had detailed Commerce Committee Chairwoman Maria Cantwell’s, D-Wash., staff being both open and constructive, despite potential concerns emerging about her control over the bill’s fate. Pence claimed Gallagher told him Cantwell’s team was ‘engaging in a constructive way.’ 

Several reports from Politico revealed last month that multiple of Cantwell’s former staffers are now lobbying on behalf of TikTok, prompting questions regarding the senator’s role in overseeing the bill’s trajectory. 

TikTok did not provide comment to Fox News Digital. 

There is no clear timeline for the legislation in the Senate, and many senators have warned that bills often take longer in the body than in the House. However, some have disputed this, including Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Mark Warner, D-Va., noting its quick passage in the House and national security implications. ‘I wouldn’t accept the premise that there’s a default to a long process,’ he recently told Fox News Digital. 

Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., previously pointed the finger at outside lobbying efforts for the bill’s stall in the Senate. He claimed the bill being moved to committee was a bid to ‘kill it.’ 

‘Just put a sign right there on the door that says ‘Property of Big Tech,’’ he suggested at the time. 

Cantwell has signaled her intent to hold public hearings on the proposed bill, in addition to a markup. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, ranking member of the Commerce Committee, telegraphed approval of the possibility as a frequent champion of returning to regular order in Congress. 

Former Vice President Mike Pence is taking aim at his two-time running mate over his long-awaited announcement on abortion.

Pence charged on Monday that former President Trump’s decision not to support a federal ban on abortion is a ‘retreat on the Right to Life’ and ‘a slap in the face to the millions of pro-life Americans.’

The former vice president’s statement came a couple hours after Trump took credit for the decision two years ago by the conservative majority on the Supreme Court that overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling, which had legalized abortion nationwide.

But Trump declined to support the push by social conservatives to ban abortion at the federal level and emphasized his support for states determining their own laws for abortion so long as there are exceptions for rape, incest and life of the mother.

‘The states will determine by vote, or legislation, or perhaps both, and whatever they decide must be the law of the land – in this case, the law of the state,’ Trump said in video posted on social media. ‘Many states will be different. Many states will have a different number of weeks… at the end of the day it is all about the will of the people.’

Pence, who’s long been a champion for evangelical voters, pushed for a federal abortion ban last year as he ran for the Republican presidential nomination, as part of a field of roughly a dozen GOP candidates who unsuccessfully challenged Trump.

In a statement on social media, Pence argued, ‘President Trump’s retreat on the Right to Life is a slap in the face to the millions of pro-life Americans who voted for him in 2016 and 2020. By nominating and standing by the confirmation of conservative justices, the Trump-Pence Administration helped send Roe v. Wade to the ash heap of history where it belongs and gave the pro-life movement the opportunity to compassionately support women and unborn children.’

The former vice president lamented that ‘too many Republican politicians are all too ready to wash their hands of the battle for life.’

And he emphasized that ‘however much our Republican nominee or other candidates seek to marginalize the cause of life, I know pro-life Americans will never relent until we see the sanctity of life restored to the center of American law in every state in this country.’

Asked for a response to the criticism from Pence, Trump campaign spokesman Steve Cheung replied, ‘Who?’

Pence was far from the only high-profile Republican to criticize the former president.

And a leading anti-abortion group also wasn’t pleased with Trump’s announcement.

Majorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life, said she was ‘deeply disappointed’ by Trump’s announcement on Monday, arguing his statement was a victory for Democrats.

‘Saying the issue is ‘back to the states’ cedes the national debate to Democrats who are working relentlessly to enact legislation mandating abortion throughout all nine months of pregnancy,’ Dannenfelser emphasized. ‘If successful, they will wipe out states’ rights.’

The blockbuster Supreme Court ruling nearly two years ago not only moved the divisive issue back to the states, but it forced Republicans to play plenty of defense in elections across the country, as a party that’s nearly entirely ‘pro-life’ has had to deal with an electorate where a majority of Americans support at least some form of abortion access.

In the wake of the Supreme Court move, Republican-dominated states have implemented a new wave of restrictions on abortion, including Florida’s six-week ban.

As Democrats target Trump and other Republicans over the divisive issue, the former president has tried to thread the needle on abortion.

As he did on Monday, Trump regularly takes credit on the campaign trail for appointing the Supreme Court justices who voted to overturn Roe v. Wade, and touts that he’s the ‘most pro-life president in American history.’

But he has also repeatedly criticized fellow Republicans for taking a hard-line stance on the issue, blaming candidates who did not allow for exceptions in cases of rape, incest and when the life of the mother is at risk, for the GOP’s setbacks in the 2022 midterm elections.

On the campaign trail during his White House run, Pence repeatedly highlighted, ‘I’m pro-life and I don’t apologize for it.’ 

And he told reporters in Iowa in August, ‘I reject the notion that standing for the sanctity of life is a political loser.’

A month later, after Trump declined to support Florida’s controversial six-week abortion ban, Pence in a Fox News interview, accused the former president of ‘backing away’ from the anti-abortion cause.

Conservative groups backing former president Donald Trump in his re-election bid say they are ‘deeply disappointed’ with his official position on abortion unveiled Monday, but it won’t deter their support in November.

The former president and presumptive GOP nominee in a video posted on Truth Social Monday morning said he cemented his position on the controversial issue, saying that abortion access should be a states’ issue and didn’t endorse a national, federal limitation — like a 15-week ban. 

Pro-life interest groups who have endorsed Trump expressed disappointment at his announcement, but it appears unlikely to sway their support in consideration of Trump’s overall stance compared to Biden’s extreme abortion policy.  

‘The reality of a stark choice between President Biden who supports abortion: any number, any reason, up until birth, all paid for by the taxpayer and President Trump: who gave us three Constitutionalist justices, 220 lower court judges, appointees who support life and the overturn of Roe v. Wade has my endorsement and support in November for President,’ said Penny Nance, CEO of Concerned Women for America (CWA), who said she ‘favors federal limits on abortion.’ 

Trump explicitly affirmed his support for in vitro fertilization (IVF) and emphasized his support for states determining their own laws for abortion so long as there are exceptions for rape, incest and life of the mother.

‘The Republican Party should always be on the side of the miracle of life and the side of mothers, fathers and their beautiful babies. IVF is an important part of that,’ Trump said.

‘The states will determine by vote, or legislation, or perhaps both, and whatever they decide must be the law of the land — in this case, the law of the state,’ Trump said. Many states will be different. Many states will have a different number of weeks… at the end of the day it is all about the will of the people.’

Trump reiterated that he was proud of the role he played in overturning Roe v. Wade, saying legal scholars on ‘both sides’ had been in favor of the move.

Which is true— even late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg said of the ruling that ‘doctrinal limbs too swiftly shaped, experience teaches, may prove unstable.’

Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, said while they are ‘deeply disappointed’ in Trump’s position, the group will ‘work tirelessly to defeat President Biden and extreme congressional Democrats.’

‘Unborn children and their mothers deserve national protections and national advocacy from the brutality of the abortion industry,’ she said. ‘The Dobbs decision clearly allows both states and Congress to act.’

She added that ‘saying the issue is ‘back to the states’ cedes the national debate to the Democrats who are working relentlessly to enact legislation mandating abortion throughout all nine months of pregnancy. If successful, they will wipe out states’ rights.’

Since the Dobbs decision, factions in both parties in Congress have pushed legislation to address abortion. Some in the GOP camp seeking a 15-week limitation, and some Democrats on the other side of the aisle wishing to ‘codify’ Roe v. Wade with virtually limitless abortion access nationwide. 

Jeanne Mancini, president of the March for Life, said ‘there remains an urgent need to advocate for the unborn at the federal level.’ 

She noted that Democrats recently tried to enact federal legislation like ‘the deceptively titled Women’s Health Protection Act which would cancel every states’ ability to limit abortion through all nine months of pregnancy, and erases existing pro-life protections for vulnerable women and children nationwide.’ 

Trump’s position aligns with what more libertarian-leaning groups have endorsed in favor of federalism following the fall of Roe.

Jeffrey Miron, vice president of research at the Cato Institute, wrote in July of 2022 that ‘under the Libertarian Land approach, each state chooses its own policies, which allows for variety and experimentation; more importantly, it avoids the coercion implicit in a federal approach. Everyone can try to influence policy in their own state, or move.’

‘A key aspect of federalism is that its policy implications align imperfectly with both liberal and conservative views. Thus both perspectives will be unhappy, but with more freedom to choose their preferred combination of policies,’ Miron wrote.

‘That is the best way to accommodate the inevitable differences in views on these and other difficult issues,’ he said.

Brian Burch, president of CatholicVote, said that ‘while federal legislation on abortion policy is challenging at present, we are confident that a Trump administration will be staffed with pro-life personnel committed to pro-life policies, including conscience rights, limits on taxpayer funding of abortion, and protections for pro-life states.’

‘President Trump’s latest statement also reflects the electoral minefield created by Democrat abortion fanaticism. The fact remains that pro-life voters need to win elections to protect mothers and children,’ he said. 

‘Democrats are now preparing a billion-dollar election year barrage with radical abortion as its centerpiece. While Trump did not commit to any specific pro-life policies, he notably will not stand in the way of states that have acted to protect innocent children from the violent abortion industry,’ he added.

‘[N]o woman should face an unexpected pregnancy alone. We believe a new whole government approach encouraging and supporting pregnant women to keep their children can be advanced under a new Trump administration,’ he said.

‘The contrast between Joe Biden and the Democrats and President Trump is unmistakable. Pro-life voters have only one option in November.’

The Justice Department will not produce subpoenaed audio recordings of former Special Counsel Robert Hur’s interview with President Biden to House Republicans, putting Attorney General Merrick Garland at risk of being held in contempt of Congress. 

House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky., and House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, have threatened to hold Garland in contempt of Congress over the Justice Department’s failure to produce the records. Last month, they set Monday, April 8, as the deadline for Garland to comply. 

The Justice Department did meet the GOP-imposed deadline to respond but notified lawmakers it would not turn over the audio files of Hur’s interview about Biden’s alleged improper retention of classified documents from his time as a senator and vice president.

‘The Department is concerned that the Committees’ particular focus on continuing to demand information that is cumulative of information we already gave you — what the President and Mr. Hur’s team said in the interview indicates that the Committees’ interests may not be in receiving information in service of legitimate oversight or investigatory functions, but to serve political purposes that should have no role in the treatment of law enforcement files,’ Assistant Attorney General Carlos Uriarte wrote in a letter to Jordan and Comer Monday. 

The Justice Department did agree to turn over some other materials, such as a transcript of an interview with Mark Zwonitzer, Biden’s ghostwriter. 

But Comer and Jordan last month warned Garland that if he did not turn over the audio recordings, the ‘committees will consider taking further action, such as the invocation of contempt of Congress proceedings.’

Comer and Jordan subpoenaed the Justice Department for a transcript of Hur’s interview with Biden and audio recordings. 

Just hours before Hur was scheduled to testify publicly last month, the DOJ produced for the committees two redacted transcripts of Hur’s interviews with Biden. 

The Justice Department did not, however, produce the audio recordings of the interviews. Comer and Jordan said the committees ‘specifically prioritized’ the production of those audio recordings. 

‘The Biden Administration does not get to determine what Congress needs and does not need for its oversight of the executive branch. It’s curious the Biden Administration is refusing to release the audio of President Biden’s interview with the Special Counsel after releasing the transcript,’ Comer said in a statement Monday evening. ‘Why shouldn’t the American people be able to hear the actual audio of his answers? The American people demand transparency from their leaders, not obstruction.’ 

Comer said his committee will ‘continue to work with the Judiciary Committee to obtain the information needed for our investigation of President Biden’s willful retention of classified documents.’ 

‘We will respond to the Justice Department soon,’ he said. 

Meanwhile, Comer and Jordan subpoenaed Mark Zwonitzer last month. The subpoena compels Zwonitzer to turn over all documents and communications with Biden or his staff related to his ghostwriting work on Biden’s memoirs ‘Promise Me, Dad’ and ‘Promises to Keep,’ including emails, call logs and more. 

The subpoena also compels Zwonitzer to turn over all contracts and agreements related to his work, along with audio recordings of interviews and conversations with Biden and transcripts of those conversations and interviews. 

The president has said that he did not share classified information with Zwonitzer, but Hur’s report states that Biden would ‘read from his notebooks nearly verbatim, sometimes for an hour or more at a time,’ and ‘at least three times President Biden read classified notes from national security meetings’ to Zwonitzer ‘nearly verbatim.’ 

Hur testified last month that Zwonitzer ‘slid’ files of audio recordings and transcripts of conversations with Biden ‘into his recycle bin on his computer’ upon learning that a special counsel had been appointed to investigate the matter.

Jordan, during Hur’s public hearing, asked whether the ghostwriter tried to ‘destroy the evidence.’ 

‘Correct,’ Hur testified.

Hur, who released his report to the public in February after months of investigation, did not recommend criminal charges against Biden for mishandling and retaining classified documents — and stated that he would not bring charges against Biden even if he were not in the Oval Office. 

Those records included classified documents about military and foreign policy in Afghanistan and other countries, among other records related to national security and foreign policy, which Hur said implicated ‘sensitive intelligence sources and methods.’ 

Hur, in his report, described Biden as a ‘sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory’ – a description that has raised significant concerns for Biden’s 2024 re-election campaign.