first time for everything
Trump set to become the 1st sitting president to attend the March for Life rally
President Trump is about to attend the yearly anti-abortion March for Life rally in Washington, D.C., becoming the first sitting U.S. president to do so.
Trump on Friday will speak at the rally that occurs annually to mark the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, drawing demonstrators who call for the decision legalizing abortion nationwide to be overturned. According to March for Life, Trump will be the first sitting American president to ever attend the event, which was first held in 1974.
Past presidents have addressed the March for Life rally, but not in person; former Presidents George W. Bush and Ronald Reagan spoke to demonstrators via telephone, CNN reports. Vice President Mike Pence and White House counselor Kellyanne Conway also both previously attended the March for Life, and Pence became the first sitting vice president to attend in 2017, The New York Times reports.
Trump, who once described himself as "very pro-choice," has supported the March for Life in past years and in 2018 became the first president to deliver a video address to the rally, according to the Times.
The Washington Post notes that Trump's decision to attend the March for Life this year "comes as he has sought to consolidate support from evangelicals in his reelection campaign amid signs that a portion of his conservative base has been troubled by his conduct." Past Republican presidents generally haven't attended in person, The Associated Press writes, "to avoid being too closely associated with demonstrators eager to outlaw" abortion.
Trump is expected to speak between 12:00 and 1:00 p.m. ET, the Post reports, shortly before Democrats' opening arguments in the Senate's impeachment trial will resume.