CHICAGO (AP) 鈥� As begins to take shape, those on both sides of the abortion debate are watching closely for clues about how his picks might affect reproductive rights policy in the .
offer a preview of how his administration could handle abortion after he repeatedly on the campaign trail. He attempted to distance himself from anti-abortion allies by deferring to states on abortion policy, even while boasting about nominating three Supreme Court justices who helped strike down the constitutional protections for abortion that had stood for half a century.
In an NBC News interview that aired Sunday, Trump said he doesn't plan to restrict medication abortion but also seemed to leave the door open, saying 鈥渢hings change.鈥�
鈥淭hings do change, but I don't think it's going to change at all,鈥� he said.
The of his , including nominations to lead health agencies, the Justice Department and event the Department of Veterans Affairs, has garnered mixed 鈥� but generally positive 鈥� reactions from anti-abortion groups.
Abortion law experts said Trump's decision to include fewer candidates with deep ties to the anti-abortion movement could indicate that abortion will not be a priority for Trump's administration.
鈥淚t almost seems to suggest that President Trump might be focusing his administration in other directions," said Greer Donley, an associate law professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.
Karen Stone, vice president of public policy at , said while many of the nominees have 鈥渆xtensive records against reproductive health care,鈥� some do not. She cautioned against making assumptions based on Trump's initial cabinet selections.
Still, many abortion rights groups are wary, in part because many of the nominees hold strong anti-abortion views even if they do not have direct ties to anti-abortion activists. They're concerned that an administration filled with top-level officials who are personally opposed to abortion could take steps to restrict access to the procedure and funding.
After Trump鈥檚 ambiguity about abortion during his campaign, "there鈥檚 still a lot we don鈥檛 know about what policy is going to look like," said Mary Ruth Ziegler, a law professor at the University of California, Davis School of Law. That approach may be revealed as the staffs within key departments are announced.
Trump he would nominate anti-vaccine activist to lead the Health and Human Services Department, which anti-abortion forces have long targeted as central to curtailing abortion rights nationwide. Yet Kennedy shifted on the issue during his own presidential campaign.
In campaign videos, Kennedy said he until , which doctors say is sometime after 21 weeks, although there is no defined timeframe. But he also 鈥渆very abortion is a tragedy鈥� and a national ban after 15 weeks of pregnancy, a stance he quickly walked back.
The head of Health and Human Services oversees Title X funding for a host of family planning services and has sweeping authority over agencies that directly affect abortion access, including the Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The role is especially vital amid legal battles over a federal law known as EMTALA, which President administration has argued requires emergency abortion access nationwide, and FDA approval of the abortion pill mifepristone.
Mini Timmaraju, president of the national abortion rights organization Reproductive Freedom for All, called Kennedy an 鈥渦nfit, unqualified extremist who cannot be trusted to protect the health, safety and reproductive freedom of American families.鈥�
His potential nomination also has caused waves in the anti-abortion movement. Former Vice President , a staunch abortion opponent, urged the Senate to reject Kennedy鈥檚 nomination. Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the national anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, said the group had its own concerns about Kennedy.
鈥淭here鈥檚 no question that we need a pro-life HHS secretary," she said.
Fox News correspondent is Trump鈥檚 pick to lead the FDA, which plays a critical role in access to medication abortion and contraception. Abortion rights groups have accused him of sharing misinformation about abortion on air.
, a staunch anti-abortion conservative, has been nominated for director of the Office of Management and Budget. Vought was a key architect of , a right-wing blueprint for running the federal government. Among other actions to limit reproductive rights, it calls for eliminating access to medication abortion nationwide, cutting Medicaid funding for abortion and restricting access to contraceptive care, especially long-acting reversible contraceptives such as IUD鈥檚.
Despite distancing himself from the conservative manifesto on the campaign trail, Trump is with people who played central roles in developing Project 2025.
Trump acknowledged that drafters of the report would be part of his incoming administration during the Sunday interview with NBC News, saying 鈥淢any of those things I happen to agree with.鈥�
鈥淭hese cabinet appointments all confirm that Project 2025 was in fact the blueprint all along, and the alarm we saw about it was warranted,鈥� said Amy Williams Navarro, director of government relations for Reproductive Freedom for All.
, Trump鈥檚 choice to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, is a who has been accused of dubious medical treatments and products. He voiced contradictory abortion views during his in 2022.
Oz has described himself as praised the Supreme Court decision , claimed and referred to abortion as But he also has Trump鈥檚 states-rights approach, arguing the federal government should not be involved in abortion decisions.
鈥淚 want women, doctors, local political leaders, letting the democracy that鈥檚 always allowed our nation to thrive to put the best ideas forward so states can decide for themselves,鈥� he said during a Senate debate two years ago.
An array of reproductive rights groups opposed his Senate run. As CMS administrator, Oz would be in a key position to determine Medicaid coverage for family planning services and investigate potential EMTALA violations.
As Florida鈥檚 attorney general, defended abortion restrictions, including a 24-hour waiting period. Now she鈥檚 Trump鈥檚 .
Her nomination is being celebrated by abortion opponents but denounced by abortion rights groups concerned she may revive the , an anti-vice law passed by Congress in 1873 that, among other things, bans mailing of medication or instruments used in abortion.
An anti-abortion and anti-vaccine former Florida congressman, has been chosen to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which collects and monitors abortion data across the country.
Former Republican congressman is Trump鈥檚 choice to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs amid a over and funding for troops and veterans. Collins voted consistently to restrict funding and access to abortion and celebrated the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
鈥淭his is a team that the pro-life movement can work with," said Kristin Hawkins, president of the national anti-abortion organization Students for Life.
___
The Associated Press鈥痳eceives support from several private foundations to enhance its explanatory coverage of elections and democracy. See more about AP鈥檚 democracy initiative . The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Christine Fernando, The Associated Press
