Minnesota first lady Gwen Walz attacked former President Donald Trump in a social media post on Friday, blaming him for access to fertility treatments being in jeopardy.
Walz, who conceived through fertility treatments, criticized Trump after he proposed to make in vitro fertilization treatments paid for by either government or insurance companies.
“Let me be clear: Donald Trump is the reason that fertility treatments are at risk,” Walz said in the post.
Her statement comes as Democrats seek to reframe the conversation around fertility treatments on legal protections, following Trump’s pledge to make the treatments more affordable.
Walz campaigned in Virginia on Friday, where she reiterated the importance of protecting fertility treatments, an issue she and her husband, Democratic vice presidential nominee Gov. Tim Walz, have focused on since he joined Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign earlier this month.
In campaign speeches, Tim Walz had characterized the issue of access to IVF treatment as “personal” to him and his family while sharing the story of his and his wife’s journey to conceiving their two children. Gwen Walz clarified in a statement to CNN earlier this month that she did not use in vitro fertilization, but a different fertility treatment called intrauterine insemination. Like IVF, it’s a common fertility procedure used by couples trying to conceive.
