Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, confirmed to Fox News that he is considering backing a national abortion ban.
In an interview with Trump that aired Sunday night, “MediaBuzz” host Howard Kurtz brought up a recent New York Times report that claimed Trump was considering a 16-week national abortion ban. The former president reportedly said in a private conversation shared with the Times that he likes the idea of a 16-week federal ban because it’s an “even” four months.
When Kurtz asked Trump if he thought a 16-week national ban would be politically acceptable, Trump said, “We’re going to find out, and pretty soon I’m going to be making a decision.”
“I would like to see if we could make both sides happy. Look, a lot of things were done with Roe by killing it — number one, we brought it back to our states,” Trump continued, adding that the Supreme Court justices “did something that from a lot of stand points is extremely good” when they repealed federal abortion protections in the summer of 2022.
The former president didn’t give a clear answer on whether he supports a 16-week abortion ban, but it was clear that he supports the three exceptions often included in abortion bans: rape, incest and to save the life of the pregnant person.
“You have to have the three exceptions,” Trump said. “I tell people, number one, you have to go with your heart. You have to go with your heart. But beyond that, you also have to get elected. If you don’t have the three exceptions, I think it’s very, very hard to get elected.”
Trump on if a national 16 week abortion ban would be politically acceptable: “We’re gonna find out.”
He then lies about Democrats supporting the murder of born babies. pic.twitter.com/B5e41m9ftm
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) March 17, 2024
The Trump campaign did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s request for comment.
During his Fox News appearance, Trump also claimed Democrats are the extreme party when it comes to abortion care, alleging that the party supports abortion in the ninth month and “even after birth.” Abortion after birth is murder, which is already illegal in the U.S. Additionally, a 2002 law codified that infants have the same rights and protections as any other human.
Abortions do sometimes occur in the second or third trimester, but Republicans typically don’t talk about why people may need care later in a pregnancy. The majority of people who need later care are young people with few resources and support, people with wanted pregnancies who are given a fatal fetal diagnosis and people who are pushed further into their pregnancy due to barriers to care like having to travel outside of their home state.
Abortion later in pregnancy is also extremely rare, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Around 1% of abortions occur at 21 weeks or later and the subset of abortions in the third trimester (after 26 weeks) is even smaller.
“Time and again, Donald Trump has shown us who he is — and we believe him,” Mini Timmaraju, president and CEO of Reproductive Freedom for All, formerly NARAL, said in a statement responding to Trump’s Fox News interview.
“These latest comments reaffirm what we’ve long known: if given the chance, he will enact a national ban on abortion. That’s why it’s imperative that we reelect the Biden-Harris ticket and deliver Congressional majorities to lock our right to abortion care into federal law.”
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Amanda Smith is a dedicated U.S. correspondent with a passion for uncovering the stories that shape the nation. With a background in political science, she provides in-depth analysis and insightful commentary on domestic affairs, ensuring readers are well-informed about the latest developments across the United States.
