As France protects abortion, US shortcomings are on the global stage
On Monday night, March 4th, French lawmakers overwhelmingly voted to enshrine abortion access and rights in the French constitution. The vote, which succeeded with 780 in favor and 72 against, makes France the first country to protect women’s rights to abortion in its constitution explicitly. This move is a positive step but largely unnecessary from a political point of view - abortion rights are not under threat in France. Instead, the legislation was initiated in 2022 as a response to the rollback of abortion protections in the US.
This makes abortion another issue that Europe has led progress on while the US has lagged behind. This winter, the European Union approved increased funding for Ukraine, and has continued to roll out funding as recently as March 5th. This starkly contrasts with the US, where a bill providing funding for Ukraine has been struggling for months to pass the US Congress. Recently, European Union officials, including the newest Ambassador from the EU to the US, have voiced frustration with America’s reluctance to provide a new aid package.
In this context, abortion is simply another issue that Europe takes leadership on, while the US lags behind or enacts decisions that are internationally and domestically unpopular. In the current political climate, it can be easy to focus on domestic and partisan politics without consideration for how the US looks on the world stage. However, recent actions (and inaction) in both domestic and foreign policy have eroded the reputation and opinion of the US abroad. This shifting viewpoint is demonstrated in the French decision to enshrine abortion rights in their constitution—French support for this change was explicitly motivated by the attacks on abortion rights in the US. In an NPR interview, French student Margot Eude said, “I hope France can be a model for the world, especially the U.S.”
Given that foreign countries and global citizens are following US actions and failures on issues such as abortion and aid to Ukraine, American policymakers should take care to ensure that their actions domestically reflect well on the US. Cultivating a positive image and perception of the US abroad has long been crucial to US foreign policy goals, which is why it is important that US policymakers and politicians keep foreign policy and America’s international standing in mind when settling partisan disputes. Domestic politics are not everything—to achieve long-term foreign policy goals, America must have a strong reputation on the global stage.