Democratic Presidential Candidate Joe Biden Reverses Position on Hyde Amendment
BLACKWELL: Maria Cardona and Alice Stewart are back. Let's talk about former Vice President Joe Biden. Maria, I'll start with you. Reversed course on the Hyde Amendment, which limits federal funding for abortion. This is a position, supporting it, that he has held for decades. Ad then from one night his campaign says that he believes that -- well, first, several weeks ago he said that he thought the Hyde Amendment should be reversed, then last night, after some reporting, he said that the campaign said that he supports it, and the next day he was on the other side of it. Is this evolution or is this pressure from the rest of the field?</s>CARDONA: Well, I actually think it is evolution. I don't think it was done in the most elegant manner, but I think that he actually had the right instinct, because as you noted there were -- when he was at a rope line with his supporters several days ago at an event he did say to her that the Hyde Amendment couldn't stay. I wish the campaign had gone with that. And if they had gone with that, then this evolution would have seemed a lot smoother. But I do think that is where he is. I do think that he took everything into consideration in terms of where we are with the very critical notion that we could lose a woman's right to choose given the Republicans' efforts to get rid of Roe v. Wade. And I think you're seeing this only with Joe Biden, but you're seeing this with a lot of Democrats and independent and, frankly, Republican women who do support pro-choice, that they really do see this as a real threat at this moment in time, and they see the possibility that the Supreme Court could overturn Roe v. Wade. I think that's causing a lot of people to really come out publicly to support it in a much more aggressive manner.</s>BLACKWELL: Understood. But the question really wasn't -- and I'll bring it to Alice now -- whether they genuinely believe that Roe could be overturned or reversed, but the reversal from Joe Biden. Alice, to you, was it evolution, or just the political reality that he had to be on the other side of this?</s>STEWART: I think the second part of that equation is right, Victor. He was persuaded not just by his political party but in his Democratic challengers, but from what we hear Alyssa Milano, a Hollywood actress. It's not unusual for politicians to evolve on key issues, but you don't evolve and go back and forth and back and forth in the span of a few days. That's just not the proper way to go about doing this. Look, I strongly believe the Hyde Amendment should stay in place. Federal funds should not be used for abortions of all kinds. That is my position, but I'm a Republican. Any person that is running for a Democratic primary should understand the base of the Democrat party and the view of Democrats, they are pro-choice and they certainly want to see Hyde overturned. That should have been discussed long before he announced his decision to jump in this race, and that should have been thought out and planned exactly how he's going to execute his changing or evolving on this issue. They did a sloppy job, but ultimately he got in the right place from the Democratic primary standpoint.</s>BLACKWELL: Maria, let me ask you about where is the vice president. He says his campaign says this weekend when 19 Democratic candidates are in Iowa, he has a family commitment. Last week it was the California Democratic Convention, 14 candidates spoke there, didn't show up at She the People. There's a list, a growing list of these major events where most of the field is showing and he's not. Is that just because he's the frontrunner and why go? Or is there something else here potentially?</s>CARDONA: I'm going to take the campaign and Joe Biden at their word that he had a family commitment that he needed to keep, and therefore that is what is keeping him from being in Iowa today. But I do think that he does have a bit more flexibility because people in Iowa already know him. He has been there. I'm sure he will be there many more times between now and when Iowans actually take a vote. And when you have the upcoming debates, which I think is what people are going to really focus on here on out, that is where you're going to really see the movement in terms of people starting to really pay attention to this. But I do think also that he cannot take this for granted. He is the frontrunner right now, but I think a lot of voters will be turned off if this is something that he believes that he deserves simply because he is the most well-known candidate out there. People need to see him work for it. People need to see that he is wanting people's vote, that he is wanting to work for people's vote, and that it's not something that he just believes he deserves because he used to be the vice president for eight years. And I think you'll see that. I think you'll see him work hard for this.</s>STEWART: Victor, if I can disagree with my friend Maria there. I've spent a lot of time in Iowa on presidential campaigns, and I can assure you absence does not make the heart grow fonder when it comes to these voters. They want you there. They want you in their living room drinking coffee many times. And I understand --</s>CARDONA: I agree with that. You'll see that from him.</s>STEWART: But at some point he has to breathe the same air as his Democratic challengers before he gets to the debate stage.</s>CARDONA: I agree.</s>STEWART: Because his numbers in Iowa are not great. He's only ahead four points in Iowa.</s>BLACKWELL: Usually those --</s>CARDONA: I agree with that.</s>BLACKWELL: And the polls show what has already been decided. The polls show the change after -- they show the wake after the ship has already passed, right.</s>CARDONA: That's right.</s>BLACKWELL: So we're expecting that we'll see the vice president at some of these events. Inevitability, there's a long list of inevitable candidates and nominees.</s>CARDONA: And apparently there's a CNN Iowa poll that's going to come out tonight, so we'll see where things stand.</s>BLACKWELL: Good job, Maria Cardona.</s>BLACKWELL: Promoting that CNN poll that's coming. Maria Cardona, Alice Stewart, thanks so much.</s>STEWART: Thanks, Victor.</s>CARDONA: Thank you, Victor.</s>PAUL: And happy birthday to the queen. Yes, Queen Elizabeth, the royal celebration today, and we get our first look at Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, since she had her son.