Trump pardons anti-abortion protesters as tens of thousands march ‘for life’

Trump – who took credit for that decision after appointing three conservative justices – tried to minimise the issue during the campaign given polls show more than 60 per cent of Americans support access to abortion.

At the National Mall, however, the vocal anti-abortion or “pro-life” movement was out in force, with organisers estimating up to 150,000 would march. Dozens of large groups from churches, colleges and activist groups around the country attended, clad in coloured beanies and carrying signs.

They included Molly Dardis and Laurie Traglia from Our Lady of the Rosary, a Catholic school in Greenville, South Carolina, who credited Trump for boosting the pro-life movement but said there was more to do. South Carolina has a so-called “heartbeat law” which effectively allows abortions up to six weeks from conception.

“It should be banned. There should be no abortions,” said Traglia. “We believe life starts at conception,” Dardis added.

However they disagreed with criminal penalties for women who terminated their pregnancy. “I don’t think women should be punished. What needs to be offered to women is support, services, resources and love,” Dardis said.

Cole Buckley, 19, from Truman State University in Kirksville, Missouri, was among the thousands of pro-life students to attend the rally – though he acknowledged being in a minority on campus. “Our club is about 20 people and our school is about 5000,” he said.

Members of a neo-fascist, white supremacist group called Patriot Front also appeared near the rally. They stood beside the Washington monument clad in uniforms, masks, and sunglasses, bearing US flags and a banner that read: “Strong families make strong nations.”