Walz’s Controversy Over Project 2025 and Pregnancy Tracking

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz recently made headlines during a vice presidential debate when he accused the right-wing policy initiative known as Project 2025 of advocating for a “registry of pregnancies.” His claims, which he reiterated on the campaign trail, have sparked considerable debate regarding the accuracy of the characterization of Project 2025’s proposals, particularly concerning their implications for pregnancy monitoring in the United States.

Walz’s assertions stem from Project 2025, a comprehensive policy agenda developed by conservative groups aimed at influencing the next Republican presidential administration. He contended that the initiative includes plans for a federal registry to track pregnancies, asserting that Republicans intend to implement such measures. Specifically, he remarked, “Project 2025 is going to have a registry of pregnancies,” reflecting a narrative he has consistently pushed since September. On that occasion, he indicated that the proposal includes “a national pregnancy coordinator that tracks all pregnancies” and emphasized that individuals would need to register with a new federal agency upon becoming pregnant.

However, a close examination of Project 2025 reveals that while it does call for enhanced oversight and reporting related to abortion, it does not explicitly mandate tracking pregnancies in the way Walz described. The initiative’s chapter on the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) criticizes the existing abortion reporting system as inadequate, claiming that there is a pressing need for more comprehensive data collection on abortion procedures. The proposal suggests that states should report various metrics, including the number of abortions performed, the gestational age of the fetus, the reasons for the abortion, the mother’s state of residence, and the method used. Failure to comply with these reporting requirements could result in states losing federal Medicaid funding.

Additionally, Project 2025 advocates for monitoring the disparity between live births and abortions across different demographic groups, but it does not require states to register pregnancies or monitor those that reach full term. While it does not mention a “national pregnancy coordinator,” the plan does propose replacing the existing HHS Reproductive Healthcare Access Task Force with a new “pro-life task force,” tasked with promoting an anti-abortion agenda.

In her remarks at the Democratic National Convention, Vice President Kamala Harris articulated a more accurate description of Project 2025’s implications, criticizing the proposal for pushing states to report on women’s miscarriages and abortions. This distinction highlights the broader concerns raised by critics of Project 2025 regarding the potential overreach into women’s reproductive health.

Beyond enhancing abortion monitoring, Project 2025 also calls for the CDC to discontinue collecting data on gender identity, reflecting a broader ideological shift away from federal support for transgender rights. Proponents of this change argue that such data collection “legitimizes” arguments in favor of transgender rights and contributes to the proliferation of diverse identities.

Project 2025’s overarching policy agenda, which aims for a sweeping restructuring of the executive branch if former President Donald Trump is re-elected, is firmly rooted in an anti-abortion stance. The proposal advocates for the rebranding of HHS as the “Department of Life” and emphasizes a mission that rejects the notion of abortion as healthcare, framing its efforts as protective of well-being “from conception to natural death.” Furthermore, it suggests that the FDA rescind its approval of the abortion pill mifepristone and enforces the Comstock Act—a long-dormant law that would prohibit the mailing of abortion pills and equipment.

There remains uncertainty regarding whether Trump would embrace the proposals outlined in Project 2025 if he were to reclaim the presidency. Although he has distanced himself from the initiative amid growing controversy, he maintains connections to the Heritage Foundation, the group behind Project 2025. This raises questions about whether he might adopt its proposals post-election. Trump has publicly stated his preference for leaving abortion decisions to individual states and has opposed a national ban on abortion. However, he has refrained from commenting on the federal reporting of abortions in states where the procedure remains legal. Senator J.D. Vance, a prominent ally of Trump, has declared that “certainly we won’t” establish a “federal pregnancy monitoring agency,” but he has been less definitive regarding enhanced abortion surveillance.

A significant statistic to consider is that the CDC reported 625,978 abortions in the United States for the year 2021, the latest data available. The CDC’s current reporting already includes information such as the pregnant person’s age, state of residence, gestational age of the fetus, race, marital status, method of abortion, and prior pregnancy history. However, the proposals outlined in Project 2025 would expand this reporting to include additional reasons for abortions, alongside potential penalties for states that fail to report adequately. Notably, the CDC’s data precedes the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, which led to numerous state-level abortion restrictions, yet some non-governmental organizations have reported an increase in abortion rates despite these barriers.

Polling data consistently indicates that a majority of Americans support abortion rights, and the issue has been a galvanizing force for voters since the Supreme Court’s decision in June 2022. A series of ballot measures related to abortion rights have generally favored proponents of those rights, and races emphasizing the topic often favor Democratic candidates. Trump has attempted to downplay the abortion debate and has shifted his position to leave decisions about abortion rights to the states after previously advocating for a national 15-week ban. Vance, who has previously highlighted his anti-abortion stance, has toned down this rhetoric since joining Trump’s ticket, acknowledging that Republicans need to rebuild public trust on this sensitive issue.

As the political landscape evolves, Democrats, along with Harris’s campaign, have utilized Project 2025 as a key argument against Trump, emphasizing its extreme proposals as a compelling reason for voters to oppose him. While Trump has sought to distance himself from the initiative, his potential alignment with its proposals remains a critical consideration for voters and political analysts alike.