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ATLANTA – After two days of intense criticism, Joseph R. Biden Jr. returned Thursday night on one of the most important issues for Democratic voters, saying he would not support plus a measure that would prohibit federal funding for most abortions.
Just last Wednesday, Mr. Biden's campaign declared support for the measure, known as the Hyde amendment. His decision to change jobs illustrates the intense pressure he faces as an alleged candidate for the Democratic nomination for the presidency.
His turnaround was brutal, particularly because Mr. Biden has been fighting for decades to defend his views on the right to abortion. Although he stated that he supported the decision of the Supreme Court in the Roe v. Wade, who has legalized abortion all over the country, he has opposed members of his own party for several abortion-related measures, which explains his reluctance to Regards his Catholic religion.
In a speech delivered Thursday night at a gala hosted by the Democratic National Committee in Atlanta, Biden attributed the change, in part to recent efforts by Republicans to reduce access to abortion in states such as Georgia and throughout the country – especially in the United States. South – calling them "extreme laws".
"If I believe that health care is a right, as I think, I can no longer support an amendment that would subordinate it to someone's postal code," Biden said.
[[[[Democratic candidates are already attacking Mr. Biden, but not by name.]
The former vice president, who generally opposes the contrition of opinions he's had in the past, said he "did not" apologize for the last post ". Mr. Biden has been criticized for other documents of his long political past, including his sponsorship. of the 1994 Crime Bill, which many Democrats now claim to have increased the number of mass incarcerations, and its leadership in the Senate Judiciary Committee, which subjected Anita Hill to harsh interrogations when it came to she accused Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment in 1991.
"I worked on the details of my health care plan, like others in this race, and I struggled with the problems that Hyde is now posing," said Biden.
He suggested that this amendment stood in the way of its goals of "universal coverage" and "the full range of health services women need", while in many states the possibility of accessing abortion coverage by other means – family planning clinics, for example – is reduced.
"People, times have changed," he said. "I do not think these guys are going to give up."
The Hyde amendment, named after former representative Henry Hyde, was adopted for the first time in 1976 and is renewed every year, with some ad hoc changes to the list of exceptions. It bans federal funding for abortion, with exceptions for rape, incest and the mother's life, and affects Medicaid funding for abortion, prompting critics to assert that the measure imposes a disproportionate burden on poor women and women of color.
Biden's appearance Thursday was part of a press conference by D.N.C. A rally in Atlanta also drew three of Biden's opponents: Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey, Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Indiana, and former Beto O'Rourke of Texas. A speech by Stacey Abrams, Georgia's Democratic candidate for governorship last year – who had some spoke of Biden's role as vice-president, although both sides questioned the idea of a common ticket – crowned in the evening.
In her remarks, Ms. Abrams, who made a passionate appeal to protect the rights of the voter, also warned against letting the primary competition become too bitter.
"If we are so divided by our primaries that we can not defeat our opponent, we are lost for a generation," said Ms. Abrams, who has not closed the door to the possibility of her own candidacy for the Presidency.
Ilyse Hogue, chair of the abortion rights advocacy group Naral Pro-Choice America, said Thursday night that she was happy to see that Biden had changed positions.
"At a time when the fundamental freedoms entrenched in Roe are under attack, we need sincere allies among our leaders," she said. "We are delighted that Joe Biden has joined the rest of the 2020 Democrats in aligning with the party's core values - support for abortion rights and the fundamental truth that the freedom to procreate is fundamental to the pursuit of equality and economic security in this country. . "
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