Ohio Sen. JD Vance wouldn’t say whether former president Donald Trump would veto a national abortion ban on Sunday—backtracking on comments from three weeks earlier, after Trump avoided saying whether he’d veto a ban in last week’s presidential debate.
“I think that I've learned my lesson on speaking for the president before he and I have actually ... [+]
Vance wouldn’t say definitively whether Trump would veto a national abortion ban if passed by Congress but continued to say Trump wouldn’t support one, telling Kristen Welker on NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday it’s “a ridiculous hypothetical” and he would rather discuss “issues that actually might come before the president.”
Vance’s comments come less than one month after he told Welker the former president would veto a national abortion ban—but when Trump was asked about that comment in Tuesday night’s presidential debate, the former president would not commit to vetoing a ban and said he had never discussed the topic with Vance.
Vance confirmed that to Welker Sunday, and said they “still haven’t discussed” it “because it’s not realistic,” restating Trump doesn’t support a national abortion ban and it’s not likely a ban would get through Congress—echoing Trump’s comments.
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When pressed by Welker again whether Trump would veto a federal abortion ban, Vance responded: “I think that I've learned my lesson on speaking for the president before he and I have actually talked about an issue.”
Abortion is expected to be a key issue in November’s election, with Democrats arguing Republicans would ban or heavily restrict access to the procedure if they gain power. Many Republicans—including Trump and Vance—have pushed back and insisted the issue should be largely decided by the states following the overturning of Roe v. Wade, which ensured a national right to abortion access. Trump has said recently he is not in favor of a national ban, but he refused to say if he would contest Congress if it approved such a ban twice during Tuesday’s debate. The former president has been inconsistent on his views of abortion throughout his career: In 1999 he was “very pro-choice” despite hating the “concept of abortion,” in 2016 he suggested women who get abortions should be punished in some way and, while in office, Trump supported a 20-week federal abortion ban. Vance has described himself as pro-life and believes states should make their own policies, but as recently as 2022 he has indicated he would support making the procedure illegal federally.
- That’s how many states have a ban on all or most abortions, according to The Washington Post. Two states have had bans blocked by courts, and another three states have bans in places after 12 or 15 weeks.