President Trump’s supporters offered a rare rebuke after he suggested being “flexible” on the Hyde Amendment in order to reach a deal on Affordable Care Act premiums (ACA). President Trump made the remark at a Republican retreat for the House of Representatives at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Congress is currently debating healthcare policy after ACA subsidies expired. Health policy researcher KFF found that premiums for those who access ACA through the marketplace could rise 114% following the expiration of tax credits.Trump suggested that Congress should “let the money go directly to the people.” “You have to be a little flexible on Hyde,” suggested the President. “You got to be a little flexible. You got to work something. You got to use ingenuity. You got to work. We’re all big fans of everything, but you got to be flexible, you have to have flexibility,” he said. The Hyde amendment prevents federal funds from being used on abortions.

The comment did not sit well with Trump’s pro-life supporters. Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, released a statement condemning the suggestion. “For decades, opposition to taxpayer funding of abortion and support for the Hyde Amendment has been an unshakeable bedrock principle and a minimum standard in the Republican Party,” wrote Dannenfelser. “To suggest Republicans should be ‘flexible’ is an abandonment of this decades-long commitment. If Republicans abandon Hyde, they are sure to lose this November.” She suggested that compromising with Democrats on Hyde would be “a massive betrayal.”

Bishop Daniel E. Thomas of Toledo, Ohio, chair of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-life Activities, also released a statement supporting the Hyde Amendment. “Authentic health care upholds the dignity of all human life, and health care policy must not violate this dignity. In upholding this core principle, the U.S. bishops have long opposed any proposals to expand taxpayer funding of abortion and will continue to do so, including, if necessary, in the current debates in Congress over health care affordability plans,” he wrote. “We urge Congress to work creatively to enact legislation that does not compromise the dignity of the human person and that ensures access to authentic, life-affirming care.”

After receiving pressure, the White House appeared to waffle on the suggestion, with US Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt affirming President Trump’s support of the Hyde Amendment. “The president did not change the administration’s policy. It was President Trump who signed an executive order protecting the Hyde Amendment. It’s the Trump administration that has taken multiple actions on various fronts to ensure that taxpayer dollars are not funding the practice of abortion.” She stated the president’s intention was that Republicans and Democrats would have to be flexible on a healthcare deal. House Speaker Mike Johnson, a pro-life advocate, also affirmed the House had no intentions of softening Hyde. “We are not going to change the standard that we’re not going to use taxpayer funding for abortion,” he said. “I’m just not going to allow that to happen.”