Former first lady Melania Trump appeared to discuss her views on women's rights Thursday in a video on X, one day after publication of an excerpt from her coming memoir in which she reportedly takes a strong stance in support of abortion rights.
In the 28-second video, Trump says: "Individual freedom is a fundamental principle that I safeguard. Without a doubt there is no room for compromise when it comes to this essential right that all women possess from birth."
"Individual freedom. What does my body my choice really mean?" she added.
The Guardian reported Wednesday that Trump defends abortion rights in her memoir, scheduled for release Tuesday.
NBC News has not independently verified The Guardian's report, which said Trump wrote: “Why should anyone other than the woman herself have the power to determine what she does with her own body? A woman’s fundamental right of individual liberty, to her own life, grants her the authority to terminate her pregnancy if she wishes.
"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," she continued, according to the report.
Asked about his wife's comments on abortion in an interview with Fox News on Thursday, former President Donald Trump said: "We spoke about it, and I said, 'You have to write what you believe. I'm not going to tell you what to do. You have to write what you believe.'
"She's very beloved," he said. "People love our former first lady, I can tell you that, but I said, 'You have to stick with your heart.' I've said that to everybody, 'You have to go with your heart.'"
Reached for comment about the former first lady's views on abortion, Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung pointed to Donald Trump's remarks in the interview.
The former president has repeatedly touted his role in ending nationwide protections for abortion, saying he “was able to kill Roe v. Wade.”
“My view is, now that we have abortion where everybody wanted it from a legal standpoint, the states will determine by vote or legislation, or perhaps both, and whatever they decide must be the law of the land,” he said in April. He said this week that he would not sign into law a measure to ban abortion nationwide if it were to reach his desk as president.
Harris campaign spokesperson Sarafina Chitika said in a statement earlier Thursday that "sadly for the women across America, Mrs. Trump’s husband firmly disagrees with her."
Chitika pointed to Trump's presidency's leading to abortion restrictions and bans across many states. Vice President Kamala Harris has made reproductive care and abortion access a centerpiece of her campaign.
The comments from Melania Trump, who has been largely absent on the campaign trail, sparked criticism from the anti-abortion-rights group Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life, which said in a post that “much of what she’s saying is simply not correct.”
The group’s president, Marjorie Dannenfelser, reposted the statement, adding: “The women of America are capable of great strength and creativity. They are naturally inclined to speak for those who are powerless. Abortion is not the source of their freedom and liberation.”
The former first lady's new position also prompted backlash from reproductive rights groups, which pointed to Donald Trump's record on abortion.
"This is just the latest example of politicians — or the politically-adjacent — shifting their position in rhetoric but not in action," Alexis McGill Johnson, the president of Planned Parenthood Action Fund, said in a statement Thursday.
"As president, he made it his mission to get Roe v. Wade overturned. Melania stood by him, never once publicly disavowing his actions until weeks before an election where our bodies are again on the ballot and they are losing voters to this issue," she continued. "Read between the lines."
Mini Timmaraju, the president of Reproductive Freedom for All, told NBC News that Melania Trump's seeming to come out in favor of abortion rights angered her because her statements could confuse voters who are not fully informed about the abortion-rights fight.
“If the Trump campaign was actually strategic, I would guess that this could actually help confuse underinformed voters and maybe give permission to soft Republican women who are conflicted because of abortion to hold their nose and vote for Trump,” she said. “Trump’s record is very clear. He overturned Roe. The contrast with VP Harris is clear. She’s been a champion of reproductive freedom her whole career."
