On March 30, presidential candidate Donald Trump sparked a debate among the other candidates and the public after stating that women who receive abortions, if the practice becomes illegal, should receive “some form of punishment.” According to CNN, he later retracted his statement and responded by saying, “If Congress were to pass legislation making abortion illegal and the federal courts upheld this legislation…the doctor or any other person performing this illegal act upon a woman would be held legally responsible. Not the woman.”
The following statements were made by Trump and the rest of the candidates – Bernie Sanders, Ted Cruz, Hillary Clinton and John Kasich – about their individual perspectives on abortion and their plans, if elected president.
- “We are not going back to the days when women had to risk their lives to end an unwanted pregnancy. The decision about abortion must remain a decision for the woman and her doctor to make, not the government. We are not going to allow the extreme right wing to defund Planned Parenthood, we are going to expand it…The current attempt to malign Planned Parenthood is part of a long-term smear campaign by people who want to deny women in this country the right to control their own bodies.” – Bernie Sanders, as stated on his campaign site
- Sanders stated on his campaign site, berniesanders.com, that he plans to expand funding for Planned Parenthood, the Title X family planning program and other programs. He said he will make decisions that protect women’s access to health care, contraception and legal abortions.
- “The question of abortion should not be an issue of partisan politics, or even of differing faith backgrounds. It is a fundamental question of justice, and of whether we still hold true those immortal words of our founders – that we are ‘endowed’ by our ‘Creator with certain unalienable rights,’ the first of which is life.” – Ted Cruz, as stated in his op-ed in “The Iowa Republican”
- On tedcruz.org, Cruz said that he plans to work with the Attorney general to investigate Planned Parenthood, beginning on his first day of office. He also plans on creating policies ‘that tear down these pillars of our society.’
- “Too often, these are called women’s issues. Well, I am a proud lifelong fighter for women’s issues because I firmly believe what’s good for women is good for America…As far as I’m concerned, any issue that affects women’s lives and futures is a women’s issue.” – Hillary Clinton, as stated on her campaign site
- On hillaryclinton.com, Clinton stated that, as president, she will work to allow women to make their own health decisions. She wants to continue funding Planned Parenthood and protect the Affordable Care Act, which she said prevents insurances companies from discriminating against women.
- “Absolutely not [women should not be punished for having abortions]. I have exceptions for rape, incest and life of the mother, but of course women should not be punished.” – John Kasich, in an interview with MSNBC
- Although he did not state his proposed plan on johnkasich.com, Kasich stated that when he was Governor of Ohio, he enacted bans on late-term abortions and elective abortions in public hospitals. He also created a new adoption process, provided state funding to rape crisis centers in Ohio and created a parenting and pregnancy support program that provides counseling to pregnant women.
- “If Congress were to pass legislation making abortion illegal and the federal courts upheld this legislation, or any state were permitted to ban abortion under state and federal law, the doctor or any other person performing this illegal act upon a woman would be held legally responsible, not the woman. The woman is a victim in this case, as is the life in her womb. My position has not changed – like Ronald Reagan, I am pro-life, with exceptions.” – Donald Trump, in a statement released on his campaign site
- Although there are no plans specifically stated on donaldjtrump.com, Trump wrote an op-ed on Feb. 15, further expressing his views on abortion. In the article, he said, “I am pro-life. I support that position with exceptions allowed for rape, incest or the life of the mother being at risk…The Supreme Court, in 1973, based their decision on imagining rights and liberties in the Constitution that are nowhere to be found. Even if we take the court at its word, that abortion is a matter of privacy, we should then extend the argument to the logical conclusion that private funds, then, should subsidize this choice rather than the half billion dollars given to abortion providers every year by Congress. Public funding of abortion providers is an insult to people of conscience as the least and an affront to good governance at best.”
