J.D. Vance reveals surprising U-turn on abortion… two years after saying he’d be open to national ban on terminations
- The 2022 vice presidential candidate said he was ‘open’ to a federal ban on abortion
- Democrats warn a second Trump term would mean a national ban on abortion
It appears that Senator JD Vance has softened his stance on abortion since joining Donald Trump’s ticket.
The Ohio Republican now says that if a federal abortion ban passes Congress, a Trump-Vance administration would be “absolutely committed” to vetoing such legislation.
It’s a major turnaround from what Vance said just two and a half years ago.
Four months before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022, returning abortion law to the states, the now Republican vice presidential nominee said he would be open to nationwide regulation.
“I would definitely like to see abortion made illegal nationwide,” Vance said during a podcast in January 2022, when he was running for a Senate seat.
Senator JD Vance gave his word that if Donald Trump wins in November, he would veto a federal abortion ban if it landed on his desk
Vance has since shifted more to the center of the issue, telling NBC’s Meet the Press in a pre-recorded interview Sunday that his party does not want “an ongoing federal conflict on this issue.”
Democrats railed against Republicans every day of last week’s national convention in Chicago, Illinois, over the Supreme Court ruling, claiming that a Trump presidency would tighten restrictions on abortion even further.
Americans with horror stories about abortion rights and restrictions took the stage at the United Center last week.
One woman spoke about the need for an abortion when she was 12, after her stepfather raped her. And another couple shared their story of the mother who nearly lost her life due to a nonviable pregnancy that she could not abort due to her state’s restrictions.
“Can you, Senator, sitting here with me today, promise that if you and Donald Trump are elected, you will not impose a federal ban on abortion?” NBC host Kristen Welker asked the vice presidential nominee.
“I can absolutely commit to that, Kristen. Donald Trump has been as clear as he can be about that.”
He explained, “Donald Trump wants to end this culture war on this particular issue. If California wants a different abortion policy than Ohio, then Ohio has to respect California and California has to respect Ohio.”
“If such a bill came to Donald Trump’s desk, would he veto it?” Welker pressed.
“I think so,” the senator replied. “He said so explicitly.”
According to Vance, the primary reason abortion should be left to the states is so that the federal government can focus on overarching, existential issues like inflation, the economy, border security and U.S. involvement in foreign wars.
Democrats believe Trump will implement nationwide abortion ban if he wins another term
In the US, many issues are addressed this way. For example, gun laws and firearm regulations vary from state to state, despite the fact that it is legal to own these weapons at the federal level and even protected by the Constitution.
Since the Supreme Court’s Dobbs ruling in 2022, the fate of abortion laws has been uncertain.
Democrats have since sounded the alarm over the decision, saying Republicans will use it to impose a federal ban that would severely limit women’s ability to terminate their pregnancies.
Trump has repeatedly said he has no plans to impose any federal restrictions or regulations on abortion, but Democrats don’t believe him.
And some Republicans, such as Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, are pushing for a federal ban, saying they will continue to pressure Trump — or any GOP administration — to impose laws at the national level.