Donald Trump danced across the matter of reproductive rights in a brand new interview, saying that hard-line Republican calls for on the difficulty are a dropping technique and falsely accusing Democrats of being in favor of abortions “after beginning.”
The previous president tried to distance himself from the GOP’s most vehement opponents of abortion throughout a wide-ranging interview on this week’s episode of “Meet the Press,” the place he stated the concept of a federal abortion ban with “no exceptions” is unrealistic and unpopular.
“I feel the Republicans converse very inarticulately about this topic,” Trump instructed NBC’s Kristen Welker within the section, which aired Sunday. “I watch a few of them with out the exceptions, et cetera, et cetera.”
“Aside from sure elements of the nation, you possibly can’t — you’re not going to win on this difficulty,” he stated. “However you’ll win on this difficulty whenever you provide you with the fitting variety of weeks.”
Trump didn’t counsel a selected quantity, and repeatedly accused Democrats of supporting abortions effectively into the third trimester of being pregnant and even “after beginning.”
In actuality, late-term abortions are exceedingly uncommon. In keeping with 2019 knowledge from the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention, fewer than 1% of abortions occur after the 21-week mark.
Though Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis falsely claimed in July that “some liberal states even have post-birth abortions,” researcher Dr. Katherine White debunked his declare with Politifact, telling the location there may be “no such factor as a post-birth abortion.”
When Welker requested Trump whether or not the difficulty ought to be determined on the federal or the state degree, Trump stated: “It may very well be state, or it may very well be federal. I don’t frankly care.”
ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS by way of Getty Pictures
Trump appeared to counsel he may assist Republicans and Democrats dealer an settlement, telling Welker: “We’re going to comply with quite a lot of weeks or months or nonetheless you need to outline it.”
“Either side are going to return collectively and each side — each side, and it is a huge assertion — each side will come collectively,” he stated. “And for the primary time in 52 years, you’ll have a problem that we are able to put behind us.”
Trump additionally mentioned his Republican presidential main opponents and their method to reproductive rights. He stated DeSantis’ six-week abortion ban in Florida is “a horrible factor and a horrible mistake,” and claimed that he’d swayed former Vice President Mike Pence to melt his “no exceptions” stance on the difficulty.
For the reason that Supreme Court docket overturned Roe v. Wade final yr, ending federal protections for abortion, Republicans have been attempting to take care of how they need to deal with the difficulty electorally in a post-Roe world.
In April, Trump was chastised by the Susan B. Anthony Listing, a bunch that opposes abortion rights, for suggesting the difficulty ought to be determined on the state degree, a place that the group known as “morally indefensible.”
Trump responded by taking credit score for the Supreme Court docket’s determination in final yr’s landmark Dobbs v. Jackson case.
“Republicans have been attempting to get this executed for 50 years, however have been unable to take action,” marketing campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung instructed the New York Publish. “President Trump, who is taken into account essentially the most pro-life President in historical past, received it executed.”
Watch Trump’s full interview on “Meet the Press” and browse the transcript right here.
