The senator, who signed a bill in 2006 as South Dakota’s governor to try to ban most abortions there, is the latest in a growing number of Republicans to oppose Graham’s bill. The bill was introduced in September. 13, which would allow some states’ stricter abortion laws to remain, but impose new restrictions on others.
While Republicans have traditionally advocated limiting abortion procedures, the party is divided on whether Congress should impose abortion rules on states. Previous attempts have been unsuccessful, and Rounds said Graham’s latest bill is unlikely to pass the House and Senate.
Neither senator’s office responded to The Washington Post’s request for comment late Sunday.
overturning Roe v. Wade Earlier this year, states set their own abortion policies — and that’s how it should stay, Rounds said.
Since the Supreme Court broke long-standing precedent, lawmakers in 22 states have moved to further limit the use of abortion. Nearly one-third of women between the ages of 15 and 44 now live in places where the procedure is banned or mostly banned.But a series of legislation rust The overthrow is in stark contrast to the views held by most Americans.
Multiple opinion polls show that a majority of Americans approve of abortion rights. In a July Pew Research Center poll, 62 percent of respondents said abortion should be legal in all or most circumstances.In a Washington Post Schar School poll that same month, 65% of respondents said that Roe v. Wade Representing a “severe disenfranchisement” for women, nearly a third said abortion would be one of the “most important” issues on the November ballot.
Still, Graham said Sunday that he “believes that the American people will embrace a nationwide abortion ban in 15 weeks.”
“For those who think pro-life is losing politics, I refuse to accept it,” he said on “Fox News Sunday.”
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), however, distanced himself from Graham’s bill last week, saying “a majority of my conference would prefer to deal with this at the state level.” Republican Senators John Cornyn of Texas and Ron Johnson of Wisconsin also said states should have abortion policies.
On a 15-week basis, Graham’s bill is less restrictive than some of the toughest abortion laws — such as the nearly total bans in Indiana and West Virginia or the heartbeat bills in Texas and Georgia. If passed, however, Graham’s bill would remove access in some blue states that have laws protecting abortion rights — such as New York, California and Illinois.
If Republicans openly oppose Graham’s bill, Democrats will seize on divisions within the party.
Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer said last week: “Republicans are twisting themselves into pretzels trying to explain why they want a nationwide abortion ban to be up to the states.”
Supreme Court strikes two days later Down roeGraham said, “There is nothing in the Constitution that gives the federal government the right to regulate abortion.”
“Let every state do it the way they like,” he told Fox News’ Martha McCallum.