Kamala Harris' visit to Minnesota Planned Parenthood spotlights abortion: Recap

Vice President Kamala Harris visited a Planned Parenthood clinic on Thursday, a historic first as President Joe Biden and Democrats across the country zero in on abortion rights in the 2024 elections.

Harris walked through the clinic in Minnesota and spoke with staff members and health care providers. The Midwest stop is the sixth on her nationwide “Fight for Reproductive Freedoms” tour.

The moment marks the first time a president or vice president has publicly visited a clinic providing abortion services while in office.

The vice president’s motorcade left the clinic and drove directly past a group of anti-abortion protesters, though supporters also gathered to try to catch a glimpse of the VP. At least one person also held a sign protesting the administration’s approach to Israel.

Catch up with the USA TODAY Network's coverage of Harris' visit.

'We have to be a nation that trusts women'

Kamala Harris on Thursday hit out at lawmakers who have supported abortion bans across the country.

"In this environment, these attacks against an individual's right to make decisions about their own body are outrageous and in many instances just plain old immoral," Harris said at the Minnesota clinic. "How dare these elected leaders believe they are in a better position to tell women what they need, to tell women what is in their best interest."

"We have to be a nation that trusts women," she added.

– Marina Pitofsky and Sudiksha Kochi

Kamala Harris touts cancer testing, screening as Democrats focus on reproductive care in 2024

In her remarks on Thursday, Harris highlighted the many services Planned Parenthood provides that are unrelated to abortion. She specifically called attention to the Pap smears and breast cancer screenings it offers patients across the country. Planned Parenthood centers also provides vaccines, diabetes screenings and menopause treatment, among several other forms of care.

She said she believes shutting down clinics that provide those services was one of many “potentially intended” consequences of the the decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022.

“It’s a travesty,” she said.

Harris added that she believes Democrats could pass further protections for reproductive health care if they are able to win back control of the House of Representatives in 2024.

“My role is to do what I just did, which is to articulate exactly these points and to continue to articulate them and to organize folks around what I know is an issue that is impacting more people than you ever really know,” Harris said.

– Rachel Barber

‘Absolutely about health care’: Kamala Harris explains trip to abortion clinic

Kamala Harris opened her remarks at the Minnesota abortion clinic by addressing the reason behind her visit: “Right now in our country we are facing a very serious health crisis,” she said.

The vice president went on to say that many Americans are suffering after the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022.

Republican-led legislatures in multiple states have since implemented their own abortion restrictions, which Harris said are not only preventing that procedure but also impeding other health care services for women.

“And please do understand that when we talk about a clinic such as this, it is absolutely about health care and reproductive health care,” Harris said.

– Savannah Kuchar 

Kamala Harris arrives at abortion clinic

The vice president arrived at the Planned Parenthood St. Paul clinic just before 1 p.m. local time and shortly after landing in the state.

Once there, she spoke briefly with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Dr. Sarah Traxler, the chief medical officer for Planned Parenthood North Central States, before moving into a tour of the facility.

– Brianne Pfannenstiel and Savannah Kuchar

Planned Parenthood centers are targets for attacks

In 2023, the FBI warned that Planned Parenthood clinics were under attack. The bureau asked for the public’s help while investigating a string of incidents intended to intimidate providers at centers nationwide.

The investigation was launched after a man set fire to a Planned Parenthood in Illinois days after the state enacted protections for abortion rights.

Last year, two men were arrested and charged with firebombing a California clinic in 2022. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, four people were also arrested in 2023 for targeted attacks on centers in Florida that took place in 2022. The defendants vandalized the clinics with spray painted threats reading “If abortions aren’t safe than neither are you” and “We’re coming for U,” according to the Justice Department.

According to the National Abortion Federation, 11 murders, 42 bombings, 200 arson attempts, and 531 assaults involving abortion patients, providers or volunteers have taken place since 1977.

– Rachel Barber

Kamala Harris lands in Minnesota for historic abortion clinic visit

The vice president landed in Minnesota just past noon local time. Upon arrival, Harris was greeted by Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison.

She left soon after in a motorcade bound for the Twin Cities clinic.

– Savannah Kuchar

Which states have restricted reproductive care after Roe v. Wade was overturned?

Dozens of states have imposed restrictions on access to contraceptives after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.

For instance, a federal appellate court upheld a Texas state law requiring parental consent for minors seeking access to birth control Tuesday.

Arizona Republicans blocked an effort from Democratic lawmakers to revive a bill that would protect the right to contraceptives in the state Wednesday, citing procedural grounds.

Joe Biden issued an executive order last year aiming to strengthen access to contraception and family planning services. It also directed the Secretaries of the Treasury, Labor, and Health and Human Services Department to consider new actions to improve access to over-the-counter contraception.

– Sudiksha Kochi, Bayliss Wagner, Mary Jo Pitzl and Ray Stern

Why is Kamala Harris’ visit to Minnesota historic?

Kamala Harris will tour a Minnesota Planned Parenthood clinic Thursday, marking what is believed to be the time a president or vice president has ever visited an abortion service provider. 

− Savannah Kuchar

Protesters gather outside of Planned Parenthood

An hour before Kamala Harris was scheduled to speak, about a dozen protesters gathered outside a Minnesota Planned Parenthood, lofting signs with slogans such as, “life is a human right" and “the real war on women.”

A heavy police and Secret Service presence surrounded the building in anticipation of the vice president’s arrival.

− Brianne Pfannenstiel

What does Planned Parenthood do?

Planned Parenthood is a nonprofit health care provider with nearly 600 locations across the country. According to the organization, more than 2 million people in the U.S. rely on Planned Parenthood for services each year.

Patients can receive abortions, birth control, and emergency contraception from providers at Planned Parenthood, though it depends on the location. Its centers also offer STD testing, mental health care, prenatal, postpartum, and gender-affirming care and more.

Planned Parenthood is a leading and controversial advocate in the fight for reproductive health access, rights, and education across the country.

− Rachel Barber

Minnesota abortion laws: Are abortions allowed in the state

The Minnesota Supreme Court first recognized that the state’s constitution guarantees the fundamental right of privacy to choose between childbirth and abortion in the 1995 case Doe v. Gomez.

The right to choose was further protected in Minnesota following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022.

Gov. Tim Walz signed the Protect Reproductive Options Act into law in 2023. Although abortion was already legal in Minnesota, the PRO Act codified individuals’ right to make “autonomous decisions” about their own reproductive health. This included the right to use or refuse reproductive health care, continue a pregnancy, or receive an abortion.

Also in 2023, Walz signed additional protections for those traveling from out of state to Minnesota for reproductive health care and the medical professionals who provide them services.

− Rachel Barber

Kamala Harris warns of a national abortion ban during visit to Michigan

Kamala Harris appeared in Grand Rapids, Michigan late last month for an earlier stop on her nationwide “Fight for Reproductive Freedoms” tour.

There, she joined other leaders including Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., for a roundtable discussion on abortion access.

“This is a very real issue,” Harris said at the time. “And I thank again, the governor and Michigan Legislature, for all you have done. But do understand, the people of Michigan do not sit back and take comfort without also understanding that elections matter and that there is a full-on conservative effort to pass a national ban, which would mean the people of Michigan would not be as safe.” 

− Savannah Kuchar and Arpan Lobo

Alabama’s IVF debate adds new layer to abortion conversation

The Alabama Supreme Court last month ruled that frozen embryos are legally protected as children, leading several facilities in the state to pause invitro fertilization services for people trying to have children.

The court’s ruling, which referred to the embryos as “embryonic children ... kept alive in a cryogenic nursery,” led to widespread backlash and statements of support for IVF from both sides of the aisle.

“The disregard for women’s ability to make these decisions for themselves and their families is outrageous and unacceptable,” President Joe Biden said in a statement at the time.

"Make no mistake: this is a direct result of the overturning of Roe v. Wade.”

Alabama lawmakers quickly passed new legislation protecting IVF providers and patients in wake of the national attention.

– Savannah Kuchar

Where do Joe Biden and Kamala Harris stand on abortion rights?

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have long called for the protections under Roe v. Wade to be reinstated. The landmark 1973 Supreme Court decision protected the right to an abortion across the country, though different states had varying restrictions.

The Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, leaving abortion rights or restrictions up to individual states.

– Marina Pitofsky

Joe Biden called for expanding abortion rights in State of the Union address

Joe Biden called for protecting and expanding abortion rights across the country during his State of the Union address last week.

Kate Cox, a Texas woman who had to leave the state to have an abortion, was a guest in the audience during the speech. Biden told members of Congress and viewers from coast to coast that "What her family had gone through should have never happened as well. But it’s happening to too many others."

– Marina Pitofsky

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kamala Harris in Minnesota at Planned Parenthood: Replay