Joe Biden: Democrats Likely Don’t Have the Votes to Codify Roe After Midterms

President Joe Biden on Monday acknowledged that his promise to legalize abortion nationwide would not come to fruition in the next Congress.

“I don’t think there’s enough votes to codify,” Biden said at a press conference in Bali, Indonesia after a reporter asked him about the future of his promises on abortion.

The president made the issue of legalizing abortion nationwide a critical part of his midterm campaign message.

“If you do your part and vote Democratic leaders in Congress, I promise you, we’ll do our part,” Biden said in October, promising that the first bill that Democrats considered in the new Congress would be the bill to legalize abortion across the country.

Senate Democrats secured their majority on Sunday after the Senate race in Nevada was called for Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto. They could add one seat to their majority if Sen. Raphael Warnock wins the runoff election against Republican candidate Sen. Hershel Walker in December.

Biden endorsed the idea of breaking the Senate filibuster rules on the issue of abortion, but not all Senate Democrats feel the same.

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Sen. Krysten Sinema (D-AZ) have both signaled their unwillingness to break the Senate filibuster, even on the issue of abortion, making it difficult for Democrats to reach a majority vote to do so.

If Republicans take back the House, it will also ensure that anything Democrats in the Senate pass on abortion will not move forward to Biden’s desk.