The Republican National Convention platform committee released its new platform Monday, solidifying the party’s alignment with Donald Trump ahead of next week’s convention in Milwaukee.
The document focuses on many of the same issues, such as immigration, that Trump has been hammering home at rallies. The platform even echoes Trump’s familiar language and formatting in his social media posts, with lots of capital letters, slogans like “DRILL, BABY, DRILL,” and sweeping promises.
Party delegates will vote on the proposed platform at their convention, where they will also formally accept Trump as the Republican presidential nominee.
Here’s what you need to know:
No national ban on abortion
The party leaves it up to states to decide how to resolve the controversial issue. The party also takes credit for overturning Roe v. Wade, which had allowed abortion nationwide.
On the campaign trail, Trump frequently cites the 2022 Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe. Trump appointed three conservative justices to the Supreme Court who ruled in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which essentially gave states the power to decide abortions.
Yet many in the Republican Party’s most conservative wing — including many evangelical leaders — have called on Trump and the party to go further, pushing for a federal abortion ban.
Aware that tighter abortion restrictions could alienate key groups like suburban women and young people, Trump has sought to tread a narrow path — taking credit for reducing abortion access nationwide, but leaving it up to states to decide how far to go. The party’s new platform reflects that tightrope.
“We proudly stand for families and life,” the platform reads. “We believe that the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees that no person shall be denied life or liberty without due process of law, and that states are therefore free to pass laws protecting those rights. After 51 years, thanks to us, that power has been given to the states and the vote of the people.”
The document mentions the word “abortion” only once, when it expresses the party’s opposition to “late-term abortion.” It also emphasizes that the party supports access to birth control and in vitro fertilization treatments.
“America First” Foreign Policy
True to Trump’s “America First” foreign policy mantra, the Republican Party platform says a second Trump administration will invest heavily in the U.S. military by raising troop salaries and stepping up production of defense equipment.
The platform – like Trump — promises to build an Iron Dome missile defense system, like the one Israel has deployed against attacks by the militant group Hamas.
The platform does not directly mention Ukraine but says one goal is to “restore peace in Europe.” Many Republicans have called for ending military aid to Ukraine, which Russia invaded two years ago.
A part of his…
