In its first official platform since 2016, the Grand Old Party (GOP) slashed all mention of its gun policy positions, The Reload reports. The Republican National Committee (RNC) Platform Committee voted 84-to-18 on Monday to adopt the new 2024 platform language after skipping the process entirely in 2020. The final document reflects former President Donald Trump's "America First" perspective and echoes many of his positions. However, it reduces the party's focus on gun policy compared to its previous platform. The entire platform discusses gun rights just once, in a preamble statement about the party’s dedication to defending “our fundamental freedoms, including freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and the right to keep and bear arms.” The final product omits any discussion of tangible gun policy ideas. The 2024 platform will officially be adopted by the party at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee next week.
The GOP’s 2024 platform being nearly silent on gun policy was not the only instance of the party leaning away from its traditional issues and stances. The updated platform also featured notably softened language on abortion restrictions, a move that reflects former President Trump’s recent sidelining of the pro-life movement. While the party’s 2016 platform endorsed a federal abortion ban after 20 weeks, the updated document codified Trump’s preference to leave the issue to the states. It also endorsed protections for birth control and fertility treatments like in vitro fertilization (IVF). The updated platform also removed the party’s previous opposition to same-sex marriage, its emphasis on reducing the national debt, and its vision for entitlement reform. Instead, the platform explicitly called for the complete protection of Social Security and Medicare without any cuts or retirement age adjustments, a longtime Trump priority. The Trump campaign celebrated the final draft of the platform and emphasized the former President’s personal influence on its contents.