USA Today seemed to modify a headline regarding former President Donald Trump’s stance on abortion following criticism from President Joe Biden’s campaign. Trump stated that states should determine their own abortion laws, leading many, including USA Today, to believe he opposed any federal regulation. Nonetheless, the Biden campaign raised concerns about USA Today’s headlines and those of other major media companies during a press briefing, asserting that Trump would undoubtedly implement a nationwide abortion ban if he won reelection.

USA Today’s initial headline was “‘The will of the people’: Trump opposes national abortion ban; says states should decide.” Mediaite first reported the change.

“Trump kept his word to overturn Roe in his last term, and he will not rest until he has banned abortion across the entire country. Period,” Biden campaign Deputy Communications Director Brooke Goren said on the call. “We all know this and the coverage needs to reflect it.”

Goren called USA Today’s headline “particularly egregiously false.”

Following the phone call, the publication seemed to modify the headline to read, “Donald Trump advocates for states to determine abortion policy, steers clear of discussing a nationwide ban,” with no editorial commentary included.

Trump emphasized his backing for states to establish their own regulations in a sequence of Truth Social messages on Monday in reaction to Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina expressing disagreement with his position. The ex-president mentioned that Graham’s disapproval of abortion as a states’ rights matter will work in favor of Democrats during elections.

“Our mission is to report the facts as accurately as possible,” a USA Today spokesperson told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “As part of our routine editorial process with breaking news, headline updates are not uncommon. In this instance, the headline was updated to more precisely reflect the story.”

Several pro-life leaders criticized Trump for his position, whereas some expressed their disappointment but expressed a desire to “educate” the former president if he is reelected. In the 2020 election, Biden secured approximately 92% of the black vote, but recent polls indicate that he has been experiencing a significant decline in support from this demographic. Additionally, polling suggests that the president has also lost backing from younger voters due to his handling of the Israel-Hamas conflict. Goren did not provide a comment in response to the DCNF’s request.


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