Vivek Ramaswamy’s meandering response: Presidential hopeful suggests pro-choice voters would change their stance on abortion rights if the law does more to ‘codify’ sexual responsibility for men — as Ohio affirms the right to terminate a pregnancy

Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy said Tuesday night that he was disappointed that his home state of Ohio had voted to guarantee access to abortion — and insisted that if he were to become president, he would make men legally responsible for parenting.

Ramaswamy spoke after Ohio scored the latest victory for abortion rights advocates since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year. Ohio became the seventh state where voters decided to protect access to abortion after the historic ruling.

The 38-year-old entrepreneur, asked by CNN’s Kaitlan Collins for his thoughts on the election, said he thought Republicans were making the wrong arguments.

He said they should present more options, such as making men more legally responsible for the children they father.

“One missing lever that we on the right should really embrace is greater sexual responsibility for men, codified into law, in an age of genetic paternity testing: place a greater burden, financial and otherwise, on the father if confirmed. paternity test,” he said.

Collins asked Ramaswamy if the result meant Republicans were out of step with the American public on this issue.

Public opinion polls show that about two-thirds of Americans say abortion should generally be legal in the earliest stages of pregnancy — a sentiment underscored in both Democratic and deeply Republican states since the justices overturned Roe in June 2022 brought.

Before the Ohio vote, statewide initiatives in California, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Montana and Vermont had affirmed abortion access or rejected efforts to undermine the right.

But Ramaswamy said the problem was that Republicans did not explain their position.

“I think this is a sign that the Republican Party needs to learn how we not only talk about this issue, but also flesh out what it means to be pro-life,” he said.

“And I, for my part, do that.

“I think I am the only candidate who is talking about enshrining greater sexual responsibility for men into law.”

Anti-abortion groups, with the help of Republican Governor Mike DeWine, tested a variety of messages in an effort to defeat the amendment, focusing mainly on the idea that the proposal was too extreme for the state.

The supporters’ campaign focused on the message of keeping the government out of families’ private affairs.

Collins asked Ramaswamy, “So, just to be clear, do you think the issue is how Republicans talk about abortion, or talk about contraception and adoption, and not the actual issue of opposing abortion access?”

Ramaswamy said, “Not just talking about it, as I said, Kaitlan, but I think I’m willing to stand up for some thoughtful provisions in the law that codify greater responsibility for men in cases of confirmed paternity testing and also greater access to options such as contraception, adoption and otherwise.

‘So I think a substantive difference can make a difference.

“It’s not just a verbal question, but yes, I do think this will change the outcome from what we see tonight.”

Ramaswamy said abortion was an issue for the states, and he agreed that Roe v Wade was repealed.

He added: “It’s not about the issue of men’s rights versus women’s rights. It’s a human rights issue.’

Pro-choice activists celebrated Tuesday’s vote, saying it was a victory for women’s rights.

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris issued statements celebrating the amendment’s victory, emphasizing that efforts to ban or severely restrict abortion represent a minority view across the country.

Harris hinted at how the issue would likely be central to Democrats’ campaign for Congress and the presidency next year, saying that “extremists are pushing for a national abortion ban that would criminalize reproductive health care in every state in our country.” ‘

Ohio’s constitutional amendment, which was No. 1 on the ballot, contained some of the most protective language for abortion access of any statewide ballot initiative since the Supreme Court ruling.

Opponents had argued that the amendment would threaten parental rights, allow unlimited gender reassignment surgery for minors and revive “partial birth” abortions, which are federally banned.

The passage of Issue 1 will almost certainly overturn a 2019 state law passed by Republicans that bans most abortions after detecting fetal heart activity, with no exceptions for rape and incest. That law, currently on hold due to legal challenges, is one of about 20 abortion restrictions passed by the Ohio Legislature in recent years.

Republicans remained defiant after Tuesday’s vote.

Ohio House Speaker Jason Stephens said the passage of Issue 1 “is not the end of the conversation.”

“As a 100% pro-life conservative, I remain steadfastly committed to protecting life, and that commitment is unwavering,” Stephens said.

“The Legislature has multiple avenues we will explore to continue protecting innocent lives.”

Previously, Republican Senate President Matt Huffman has suggested that lawmakers could come up with a new amendment next year that would overturn Issue 1, although they would have just six weeks after Election Day to target the 2024 primaries to get. mood.

Issue 1 specifically declared an individual’s right to “make and exercise his own reproductive decisions,” including contraception, fertility treatments, miscarriages and abortion.

It allowed the state to regulate the procedure after fetal viability, as long as exceptions were made for cases where a doctor determined the woman’s “life or health” was in danger.

Viability was defined as the point at which the fetus had ‘a significant chance of survival’ outside the uterus with reasonable interventions.