US congresswoman Mary Miller has called the Supreme Court's decision overturning Roe v Wade a "victory for white life" while speaking at a rally with former president Donald Trump.
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Miller's spokesman said the Illinois Republican had intended to say the decision was a victory for a "right to life". The line as delivered was out of step with the disproportionate impact the repeal of abortion rights will have on women of colour.
Miller is running for re-election in the state's newly redrawn 15th congressional district against Republican Representative Rodney Davis with the former president's blessing.
She had been invited on stage to speak by Trump, who held the rally in Mendon, Illinois, on Saturday night to turn out the vote ahead of the state's Tuesday primary.
"President Trump, on behalf of all the MAGA patriots in America, I want to thank you for the historic victory for white life in the Supreme Court yesterday," she said, drawing cheers from the crowd.
Miller spokesman Isaiah Wartman told the Associated Press that it was "a mix-up of words".
"You can clearly see in the video ... she's looking at her papers and looking at her speech," Wartman said.
Her campaign noted she was the grandmother of several non-white grandchildren, including one with Down syndrome.
The freshman congresswoman, who was among those who voted to overturn the results of the 2020 election, previously came under criticism for quoting Adolf Hitler.
"Hitler was right on one thing. He said, 'Whoever has the youth has the future'," Miller said in a speech last year, according to video posted by WCIA-TV.
She later apologised after Democrats in Illinois called for her resignation.
Australian Associated Press
