Melania Trump defends abortion rights in her new memoir

Melania Trump has revealed why she has long-held support for the right to abortion just weeks before the US election where Donald Trump’s views are still causing division.

Melania Trump has disclosed her long-held support for the right to abortion in a book to be published a month before an election in which her husband’s pro-life stance looms as a decisive issue.

Former president Donald Trump, who has flip-flopped on the contentious matter throughout his life, now boasts of helping to overturn the federal right to abortion which enabled several US states to implement sweeping bans.

But in her memoir to be released next week, Mrs Trump reportedly said: “Why should anyone other than the woman herself have the power to determine what she does with her own body?”

According to a copy of the memoir, obtained by The Guardian, the Republican candidate’s wife said it was “imperative to guarantee that women have autonomy in deciding their preference of having children, based on their own convictions, free from any intervention or pressure from the government”.

US former President and 2024 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump stands next to Former US First Lady Melania Trump onstage during the last day of the 2024 Republican National Convention. Picture: AFP

“A woman’s fundamental right of individual liberty, to her own life, grants her the authority to terminate her pregnancy if she wishes,” Mrs Trump wrote.

“Restricting a woman’s right to choose whether to terminate an unwanted pregnancy is the same as denying her control over her own body. I have carried this belief with me throughout my entire adult life.”

Melania Trump’s new memoir is coming out soon. Picture: Supplied

Vice President Kamala Harris has been campaigning to restore the abortion protections that were lost when the Supreme Court – with a conservative majority installed by Mr Trump – overturned the historic Roe vs. Wade decision two years ago.

Melania Trump says her upcoming memoir will give readers the truth— casting herself in a new ad as the victim of misrepresentation during her husband Donald Trump’s time in the spotlight. Picture: @melaniatrump on X

The Democratic candidate has accused Mr Trump of wanting to implement a federal ban on abortion. Earlier this week, after repeatedly dodging the issue, he said he would veto such a measure if it was passed by Congress and would leave abortion rules up to the states.

Mrs Trump has steered clear of supporting her husband on the campaign trail in his bid to return to the White House. But the leak from her memoir suggests the former model will be more forthright about her views than she has previously been during his political career.

According to The Guardian, she wrote that they had “occasional political disagreements”, including on immigration policy.

“But I believed in addressing them privately rather than publicly challenging him,” Mrs Trump said.

Originally published as Melania Trump defends abortion rights in her new memoir