WASHINGTON — Sen. Lindsey Graham sparred with Donald Trump on Monday after the former president attacked R.C. for pushing a bill that would ban abortion in the United States after 15 weeks of pregnancy. While Trump has said the issue should be left up to the states, Graham has vowed to continue pushing for federal restrictions.
“I think we have to draw a line,” Graham told reporters. “We know there was no federal role in the Dobbs decision. There are three laws on the books at the federal level. So the idea that Dobbs is obstructing the federal government is, I think, wrong. “The idea that the Republican Party is abandoning opposition to late-term abortion, I think, would be a mistake because the majority of Americans are against late-term abortion.”
“For the pro-life movement, it’s not about geography, it’s about children. So if you’re turning the pro-life movement into a geographic movement, I think you’re wrong,” he added. “15-week-old baby sucks thumb, feels as much pain in California and New York as in South Carolina.”
Graham’s comments came after Trump issued a video statement Earlier Monday, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health bragged about the Supreme Court’s Roe v. While overturning Wade’s decision, he also said the issue should be left to the states. After that there was a turnaround Trump has approved federal restrictions, and the immediate blowback from abortion foes showed just how divided the GOP is on how to handle the difficult politics of the issue. Trump has not ruled out signing federal restrictions, especially if Congress passes them.
“We are deeply disappointed by President Trump’s position,” said Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-life America, a prominent abortion rights group. It turns the national debate over to Democrats, who are working relentlessly to pass legislation mandating abortion during all nine months of pregnancy. If successful, they will eliminate states’ rights.
Former Vice President Mike Pence, who clashed with his former running mate after leaving office, said Trump’s statement was “a slap in the face to the millions of pro-life Americans who voted for him in 2016 and 2020.”
Graham, who has introduced bills to ban abortions after 20 weeks and more recently after 15 weeks, said he disagrees. Trump later attacked her on social media, suggesting that abortion was now a political defeat for the GOP and that “cruel people like Lindsey Graham have handed the Democrats their House, Senate, and possibly even the Presidency.”
Answering the question, Graham still disagreed with Trump.
“I support him. I feel comfortable telling everybody what I believe,” he said, arguing that “what’s popular with the American people” are some restrictions on abortion after a certain stage of pregnancy. “What I’m trying to do is, OK, post-Dobbs, where should we be? Let’s leave it up to the states. let’s go, I agree with that – up to a point. I’m trying to focus the party on where the American people are. In the birth process itself, people are starting to want restrictions.”
The clash pits Trump, the 2024 Republican nominee, against a staunch ally on an issue with explosive political implications. President Joe Biden and the Democrats voted for the Supreme Court’s five GOP-appointed justices in Roe v. The decision to repeal Wade has touched off national anger as Republicans struggle to navigate a changing political environment after achieving their decades-long goal.
Graham noted that Republicans should continue to attack Democrats as the real extremists on abortion: “Republicans should think that if the Democrats had their way, there would be no restrictions on abortion anywhere, anytime. The law of the country would be abortion on demand until the moment of birth. This is a very extreme, unpopular position.”
The controversy is all the more remarkable given that Trump, as president, supported Graham’s 20-week abortion ban in 2018 and criticized the Senate for not passing it. Senate Republicans voted in favor of it at the time. Asked if Trump was a hypocrite for opposing it because the Supreme Court allowed it, Graham said: “I’ll let you ask him about that.”
Graham, who has since changed the bill to a 15-week ban, did not say when or if he would reintroduce the legislation.
“We’ll talk about it,” he said. “We’ll see how things go.”
Note that Trump has not said whether he will sign or veto the federal abortion restrictions. Graham said Trump is a “huge pro-lifer,” adding that if Trump wins, he will return to his support for restrictions.
“I hope so,” he said.