President Joe Biden said he would support the use of federal funds to help women afford abortions, he revealed in an interview.
During an interview with NowThis News, a medical resident asked the president about the idea of using taxpayer funds to pay for childcare and time off work for women seeking an abortion — and for the abortion itself, reportedly.
“The answer is absolutely … I do support that, and I’ve publicly urged companies to do that,” Biden replied.
Details of Biden’s answer on abortion was revealed by Axios ahead of the interview, scheduled to air Sunday on social media.
The president lamented that some women seeking abortions could not afford to get abortions, because of other costs.
“[I]magine the women who need that kind of assistance, but have no money at all to be able to do this,” he added. “None. … What do they do? They don’t have the option.”
Biden praised companies for also stepping in to help women more easily obtain abortions, by offering free travel and paid time off to seek an abortion.
“I’ve urged them publicly as president of the United States … ‘This is what you should be doing,'” he said.
Biden recently stepped up his effort to push legalizing abortion nationwide into his midterm agenda.
On Tuesday, he vowed that the first bill he would sign in January would be a bill making Roe v. Wade federal law if Democrats maintained their majorities in Congress.
When asked by reporters Wednesday whether he believed that abortion or inflation was the most important domestic issue of his administration, Biden replied, “We ought to be able to walk and chew gum at the same time. You know that old expression?”