Former President Donald Trump aimed to connect with female voters during a Fox News town hall that was broadcast on Wednesday morning. The event featured Trump answering questions from an exclusively female audience over the course of an hour.
During the town hall, Trump addressed a variety of subjects, such as child care and the inclusion of transgender children in sports. Towards the end, he discussed reproductive rights and admitted that certain states have enacted abortion laws that are “too tough” following the Dobbs decision. He also stood by his previous remarks made to Maria Bartiromo, where he referred to some Democrats as “the enemy from within” and indicated a willingness to utilize military force against them.
This town hall was recorded against the backdrop of a significant gender gap in the American electorate. Recent data from an NPR/PBS News/Marist poll shows that Vice President Harris leads Trump among women by a margin of 15 percentage points, at 57 to 42 percent.
The participants in the audience displayed strong support for Trump, often erupting into enthusiastic cheers. The host, Faulkner, maintained a supportive tone and critiqued Democratic efforts to counter the town hall with a press call on the preceding day, visibly reacting to a clip of Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock.
Throughout the event, Trump reiterated many of his campaign goals, including increasing oil drilling, reducing business taxes, and addressing illegal immigration.
However, Trump did not provide clear responses to some questions, particularly concerning his plans with Congress on immigration. Instead, he criticized President Biden and Vice President Harris for their handling of border issues, calling the situation unsustainable and stating that the United States is being mocked globally.
Regarding childcare costs, Trump mentioned enhancing the Child Tax Credit during his presidency but was not specific about further plans to alleviate the expenses related to raising children, merely expressing a desire to make adjustments fair for everyone and reduce corporate taxes.
Faulkner questioned Trump on his previous comments about using military forces against political adversaries. Trump reiterated that the internal threat is significant and suggested that it could be managed by the National Guard or, if necessary, by the military. He maintained that his comments were not intended as threats towards political opponents.
The subject of abortion was broached about 50 minutes into the program. When questioned about government involvement in women’s rights to their bodies, Trump reiterated that he returned the decision on abortion to the states. He pointed out that some states have adopted more liberal laws than anticipated, although certain laws, he acknowledged, are “too tough.”
Trump’s appointment of three conservative Supreme Court justices, who voted to overturn Roe v. Wade and end federal abortion rights protections, was also noted. The Harris campaign continues to target Trump on reproductive rights, emphasizing emotional personal stories to criticize such policies.
Before the town hall, the Harris campaign preempted Trump’s appearance with a press call and released an ad featuring stories of women affected by restrictive abortion laws.
