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A Republican in a Tight House Race Is Borrowing Abortion Rights Terminology

Matt Gunderson, challenging Rep. Mike Levin in California, is lifting words from Bill Clinton to massage how voters view his stance on abortion.

California March for Life rally held in Sacramento.
Rich Pedroncelli/AP

With abortion becoming a big liability for the GOP in the post-Roe era, one Republican in a tight House race in California is taking an original messaging approach in a new TV ad: borrowing terminology coined by Democrats and the abortion rights movement.

“A woman’s right to choose? I’m pro-choice. I believe abortion should be safe, legal and rare,” says Matt Gunderson, a Republican challenging Rep. Mike Levin, in a television ad released Wednesday. “I don’t want politicians dictating health care for my daughters.”

The phrase “safe, legal and rare” was coined by former President Bill Clinton in 1992. Democrats have since moved on from the slogan — and from the idea that abortion should be “rare” — and instead, the party’s message has focused on ensuring women have full autonomy over their pregnancies.