HISTORIC: President Trump Will Be The First President To Speak At The March For Life!

Even CNN covered the historic event:

President Donald Trump will attend Friday's March for Life, an annual anti-abortion event in Washington, he announced on Twitter.

"See you on Friday...Big Crowd!" Trump tweeted Wednesday, sharing a video from last year's march. 

Trump will be the first president to attend the march, according to Jeanne Mancini, president of March for Life. Trump was also the first president to speak at the march via video feed when he addressed participants in the 2018 march.

The administration has consistently worked to regulate or restrict abortion access since Trump assumed office. His expected attendance at the march comes on the heels of his return from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, and as the Senate impeachment trial into his conduct regarding Ukraine is underway. 

Mancini said in a statement Wednesday that March for Life is "deeply honored" to welcome Trump to the group's 47th annual march. 

"He will be the first president in history to attend and we are so excited for him to experience in person how passionate our marchers are about life and protecting the unborn," she said. A press release for the march says Trump will speak at the event. 

Mancini called Trump and his administration "consistent champions for life," adding that "their support for the March for Life has been unwavering."

During his tenure, Trump has appointed anti-abortion judges and opposed abortions later in pregnancy, and his administration has taken efforts to further separate federal funds from abortion services.

The Friday event -- themed "Life Empowers: Pro-Life is Pro-Woman" -- will kick off with a rally on the National Mall followed by a march that concludes at the steps of the Supreme Court. House Minority Whip Steve Scalise, a Louisiana Republican, and GOP Rep. Chris Smith of New Jersey also are slated to speak at the march.

Marjorie Dannenfelser, the president of the anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony List, said the President's "presence at the March for Life, the world's largest pro-life event, signals a watershed moment for the Pro-life Movement." Dannenfelser previously served as the national chairwoman of the 2016 Trump campaign's Pro-life Coalition.

Abortion rights activists slammed Trump's announcement as a ploy to appeal to a minority of supporters on the issue.

NARAL Pro-Choice America President Ilyse Hogue called Trump's move "an act of desperation, plain and simple," accusing him of "turning to deception and disinformation about abortion to gin up a vocal and extreme minority as he faces the escalating reality that his presidency is crumbling around him."

And from Fox News:

President Trump announced Wednesday that he plans to attend the March for Life this week, which would make him the first president in history to speak at the largest annual gathering of pro-life activists.

"See you on Friday...Big Crowd!" Trump tweeted.

The event is scheduled for Friday in Washington. Organizers confirmed the president's attendance.

“We are deeply honored to welcome President Trump to the 47th annual March for Life," March for Life president Jeanne Mancini said in a statement provided to Fox News. "He will be the first president in history to attend and we are so excited for him to experience in person how passionate our marchers are about life and protecting the unborn."

The march is expected to draw 100,000 activists to the nation's capital as Republicans like Trump pursue an ambitious pro-life agenda. While pro-life activists have heaped praise on the president for his pro-life policies, his actions have sparked lawsuits and condemnation from groups like Planned Parenthood.

"From the appointment of pro-life judges and federal workers, to cutting taxpayer funding for abortions here and abroad, to calling for an end to late-term abortions, President Trump and his Administration have been consistent champions for life and their support for the March for Life has been unwavering. We are grateful for all these pro-life accomplishments and look forward to gaining more victories for life in the future," Mancini wrote.

Trump's announcement came after another unprecedented move. During a video message in 2018, Trump became the first sitting American president to address the March for Life.

Planned Parenthood responded critically. "Further confirmation that the sitting President of the United States is determined to end the American people's ability to access abortion," Acting President and CEO Alexis McGill Johnson tweeted.

The March for Life's timing is significant as it takes place around the anniversary of Roe v. Wade -- the landmark Supreme Court decision that prohibited states from banning the procedure at certain points during pregnancy.

On the actual anniversary of the decision, President Trump appeared to flout that legacy by declaring it the National Sanctity of Human Life Day.

"Today, I call on the Congress to join me in protecting and defending the dignity of every human life, including those not yet born," Trump said in a proclamation Wednesday. "I call on the American people to continue to care for women in unexpected pregnancies and to support adoption and foster care in a more meaningful way, so every child can have a loving home."

His speech will take place as both sides of the abortion debate prepared to pour vast sums of money and resources into the 2020 elections.

Last week, Planned Parenthood rolled out its most expensive electoral effort to date, warning about an unprecedented attack from Republicans. The operation will include everything from grassroots organizing and building its volunteer base to polling and paid advertisements. Several pro-life organizations will be spending millions of dollars -- $52 million from Susan B. Anthony List -- on the election as well.

The unprecedented spending likely came in response to a wave of state-level laws restricting abortion in addition to what pro-choice advocates say is a serious, federal assault on the organization. Pro-life activists have claimed they are literally trying to save lives by imposing restrictions like the heartbeat bill, which would prohibit abortions after a doctor can detect a heartbeat.

Planned Parenthood responded to pro-life measures with a long list of legal challenges -- approximately 40 open cases, according to its most recent annual report -- and was able to salvage Missouri's last abortion clinic amid restrictive legislation.