Biden says Democrats will not be able to pass abortion-rights legislation

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden said Monday that he did not expect Democrats to have enough votes in Congress to be able to pass legislation codifying Roe v. Wade

Asked at a press conference in Bali, Indonesia, what Americans could expect Congress to do on abortion access, Biden said: “I don’t think they can expect much of anything other than we’re going to maintain our positions.”

“I don’t think there’s enough votes to codify unless something happens unusual in the House,” Biden said.

“I think we’re going to get very close in the House,” he added. “But I don’t think we’re going to make it.”

Although control of the House remains unresolved as vote counting continues in the midterm elections, Republicans remain the favorite to control of the chamber by a narrow majority.

Democrats have kept control of the Senate, but passing a bill through that chamber would likely require 60 votes, which would necessitate about 10 Republicans supporting it.

Exit polls showed that abortion was a major motivating issue for voters this election cycle.

Although Democrats performed surprisingly well in the midterm elections, Biden’s remarks on Monday underscore the limitations of his policy agenda going forward as he adjusts to what will likely be a divided Congress.

At the same press conference, Biden said that the midterm elections demonstrated “the strength and resilience in American democracy” through voters’ “strong rejection of election deniers at every level.”

“What these elections showed, is that there’s a deep, unwavering commitment in America to preserving and protecting and defending democracy,” Biden said.

Biden is currently traveling overseas for a series of international conferences. He attended the United Nations summit on climate change in Egypt last week and is in Bali for the annual Group of 20 meeting.

Biden said that throughout his trip it has “been clear just how closely the world, our allies and our competitors as well, have been following our elections at home.”