Lawmaker Makes Gaffe Praising Abortion Decision

Rep. Mary Miller calls it a 'victory for white life'
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Jun 26, 2022 8:35 AM CDT
Lawmaker Makes Gaffe Praising Abortion Decision
Rep. Mary Miller of Illinois speaks as former President Trump stands behind her at a rally at the Adams County Fairgrounds in Mendon, Ill., Saturday, June 25, 2022.   (Mike Sorensen/Quincy Herald-Whig via AP)

Rep. Mary Miller of Illinois, speaking at a rally Saturday night with former President Trump, called the Supreme Court's decision overturning Roe v. Wade a “victory for white life.” Miller's spokesman said the Illinois Republican had intended to say the decision was a victory for a “right to life." It was a "mix-up of words," spokesman Isaiah Wartman tells the AP. "You can clearly see in the video ... she’s looking at her papers and looking at her speech." See the video here.

Miller is running for reelection in the state’s newly redrawn 15th Congressional District against GOP Rep. Rodney Davis with the former president’s blessing. She had been invited on stage to speak by Trump, who held the rally in Mendon, Illinois, to turn out the vote ahead of the state’s Tuesday primary. “President Trump, on behalf of all the MAGA patriots in America, I want to thank you for the historic victory for white life in the Supreme Court yesterday,” she said, drawing cheers from the crowd.

The line as delivered was seen as out of step with the disproportionate impact the repeal of abortion rights will have on women of color. Miller's campaign noted that she is the grandmother of several nonwhite grandchildren, including one with Down syndrome. The freshman congresswoman, who was among those who voted to overturn the results of the 2020 election, previously came under criticism for quoting Adolf Hitler. "Hitler was right on one thing. He said, 'Whoever has the youth has the future,’” Miller said in a speech last year. She later apologized after Democrats in Illinois called for her resignation.

(More Roe v. Wade stories.)

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