Arizona gubernatorial candidate Katie Hobbs is the latest high-profile Democrat to suggest that women should be free to have an abortion at any time during their pregnancy.
Hobbs appeared on CBS’ “Face the Nation” Sunday to discuss her race against GOP nominee Kari Lake, who supports abortions up to 15 weeks of pregnancy. When asked what she thinks about that restriction and whether she favors any specific limit on abortion, Hobbs indicated she supports no limit.
“I support leaving the decision between a woman and her doctor and leaving politicians entirely out of it,” Hobbs said.
Hobbs’ comments follow similar remarks made by House Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chair Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., at a press conference in September.
TOP DEMOCRAT REFUSES TO SAY WHETHER SHE WOULD ACCEPT ANY LIMITS ON ABORTION
Arizona Democratic gubernatorial nominee Katie Hobbs declined to support any limit on abortions during an interview on CBS Sunday.
(AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
Murray led a group of Democrats at a press conference where they criticized Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., for introducing a bill to limit abortions after 15 weeks. Graham’s bill included exceptions for rape, incest and health of the mother, and would only punish the people performing the abortions, not any woman seeking one.
ARIZONA DEM GOV NOMINEE KATIE HOBBS APPEARS TO SUPPORT ABORTION UP TO BIRTH
Murray dodged specific questions from Fox News Digital about whether there are any potential time limit Democrats could accept on abortion, but like Hobbs, she indicated that it should be up to women and their doctors.
“We want to put in law protections for every woman in the country, no matter where they live, or how much money they make, or where they come from [to give them] the ability to make their own health care decisions as they had under Roe before it was overturned,” she said.
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., declined to endorse any specific limit on when a woman could get an abortion when asked by Fox News Digital at a press conference last month.
(Greg Nash/Pool via REUTERS)
DEMOCRATS REJECT GRAHAM’S ‘RADICAL’ PLAN TO ALLOW ABORTION UP TO 15 WEEKS
Murray also deflected when asked about Republicans’ argument that a 15-week limit is consistent with many other developed countries, including most in Europe.
“They can debate weeks and countries and everything else,” Murray said. “I know what my constituents want. I know what the women and men of America want in vast numbers. And that is the ability to make their own health care decisions with their family, their faith, their doctor, depending on what they need. I am not in that doctor’s office with them, neither should any other politician be.”
Hobbs said Sunday that late-term abortions are very rare and usually happen when something has gone wrong with a pregnancy. She made a similar argument to Murray’s by saying the government should not have any role in limiting when an abortion may happen.
The Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Supreme Court ruling thrust abortion forth as a major 2022 campaign issue.
(Joshua Comins/Fox News)
“A doctor’s not going to perform an abortion late in a pregnancy just because somebody decided they want one. That is ridiculous,” Hobbs told Garrett. “Abortion is a very personal decision that belongs between a woman and her doctor.”
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Abortion became a key issue in the midterms after the Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned Roe v. Wade.
Previously under Roe, states could implement some limits on abortion but none that could effectively ban the practice. Now, with that precedent gone, states can implement any limits or bans on abortions they want. The federal government technically can do the same, although that has been highly unlikely in the current Congress given the Democrats’ narrow majority in the House and Senate.
Fox News’ Haris Alic contributed to this report.
