Donald Trump Just Slapped Millions of Americans 'in the Face': Mike Pence

Former Vice President Mike Pence ripped Donald Trump's "retreat" on abortion rights after he revealed how he would approach the matter if reelected in November.

Trump, the presumptive 2024 Republican presidential nominee, said he would leave the issue of abortion rights to individual states in a video posted to Truth Social, his social media platform, on Monday morning.

"My view is now that we have abortion where everybody wanted it from a legal standpoint, the states will determine by votes or legislature or perhaps both, and whatever they decide must be the law of the land, in this case, the law of the state," Trump said in the video.

He also reiterated that he is "strongly in favor" of exceptions for rape, incest and to save the life of the mother.

"At the end of the day, it's all about the will of the people," Trump added.

His remarks have been viewed as an effort by some to alleviate fears among moderate voters about whether he would support federal limitations on the medical procedure, as abortion rights has become a sticky subject for Republicans, as voters across the United States have voted in support of abortion rights in recent years. However, his position on abortion has been met with a chilly response from his base of conservative voters, many of whom have pushed for nationwide limits, or outright bans, on abortion.

Pence, who served as Trump's vice president during his first term in office, but turned against him following the January 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol building, joined the chorus of conservative critics opposing Trump's abortion rhetoric Monday afternoon.

He slammed Republican politicians he believes are "all too ready to wash their hands of the battle for life" in a post to X, formerly Twitter, just hours after Trump announced his abortion position.

"President Trump's retreat on the Right to Life is a slap in the face to the millions of pro-life Americans who voted for him in 2016 and 2020," Pence wrote.

He touted the Trump administration's nomination of conservative Supreme Court justices who overturned Roe v. Wade, the landmark decision that for decades guaranteed abortion rights across the U.S. in June 2022 in the case Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization.

Following the Dobbs decision, Republicans faced backlash at the polls. Democrats have overperformed special elections and blunted Republican gains during the 2022 midterms, largely running on protecting reproductive rights. Meanwhile, several states passed pro-abortion right ballot referendums, even in conservative-leaning states such as Kansas.

Pence continued to write on X that he believes Republicans can win on abortion when they "we speak the truth boldly and stand on the principle that we all know to be true."

"However much our Republican nominee or other candidates seek to marginalize the cause of life, I know pro-life Americans will never relent until we see the sanctity of life restored to the center of American law in every state in this country," he added.

Newsweek reached out to Trump's campaign and Pence's political team for comment via email.

Pence previously challenged Trump in the Republican presidential primary, presenting himself as a more traditionally conservative option. However, he ended his campaign in October, months before the first votes would be cast after struggling to gain traction against his former boss.

During a Fox News interview in March, Pence said he would "not be endorsing Donald Trump this year."

"Donald Trump is pursuing and articulating an agenda that is at odds with the conservative agenda that we governed on during our four years," he said. "And that's why I cannot in good conscience endorse Donald Trump in this campaign."