Fox News host JD Vance confronts his views on the national abortion ban

Fox News host Shannon Bream on Sunday pressed Ohio Sen. JD Vance on the Republican presidential candidate’s stance on abortion, an issue that a new poll shows is most important to young women voters this election.

A KFF poll of 678 female voters conducted between September 12 and October 1 found that abortion is the top issue for young voters ages 18 to 29, with 39 percent citing it as their top concern. The survey shows a significant increase in prioritization, compared to about 20 percent in the same survey last spring.

Bream opened the conversation on Fox News Sunday about abortion by playing a clip from 2022 of Vance, former President Donald Trump’s vice president, speaking during a debate for Ohio’s open U.S. Senate seat. In the video excerpt, the moderator asks whether Vance would vote “for.” [Senator] “Lindsey Graham’s 15-week ban?” Graham’s proposed legislation would impose a 15-week ban on abortion nationwide.

In the debate, Vance responded: “I think it’s entirely reasonable to say that you can’t abort a baby after 15 weeks of pregnancy, especially for elective reasons. No civilized country allows this.”

Bream added the question following the video clip: “If you’re talking about a 15 to 20 week ban nationally, that’s going to deny access to a lot of people who now have better access in different states.” “Would you vote for something that would be a 15- to 20-week ban at the national level?”

Vance replied: “I think it is reasonable to say that late-term abortions are barbaric to a certain extent when they are performed for voluntary reasons. Of course there have to be exceptions.”

He then criticized Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, for their pro-abortion stance, claiming, “They want late-term abortions funded by taxpayers and forced on Christian hospitals, and that’s nothing.” . “Donald Trump and I like.”

Harris, meanwhile, has said that if elected, she would codify reproductive rights at the federal level.

Bream interjected: “When you talk about a 15 or 20 week ban, people will say that sounds like a national ban – we’re just playing with semantics here.”

“It’s not Shannon,” Vance replied, further noting, “[former] President Trump…has explicitly stated that he would not support a national abortion ban. He has said he believes this matter should be left to the states.”

Newsweek Vance’s campaign emailed Sunday seeking further comment.

The Republican presidential candidate’s stance on abortion has been in the spotlight in recent weeks, particularly surrounding the vice presidential debate, in which Vance falsely said he had never supported a nationwide abortion ban – a claim that the 2022 video contradicts.

Trump, responding live to the debate on Truth Social, his social media platform, posted on October 1: “Everyone knows that I would not support a federal abortion ban under any circumstances and would even veto it.” The Post came nearly a month after the former president did not say during the Harris presidential debate whether he would veto a national ban.

In an unexpected move, former first lady Melania Trump joined the national abortion debate by expressing support for abortion rights in her memoir.

“Why should anyone other than the woman herself have the power to decide what she does with her own body? “A woman’s fundamental right to individual liberty gives her the power to terminate her pregnancy if she wishes,” she wrote Melania.

Vance told Bream on Sunday that the Republican presidential candidate is “tired of the nationalized culture war on this issue and I think the best way is to give it back to the voters in the states.”

Vances Fox News Sunday His appearance comes a week after Walz appeared on the show where he was pressured over his pro-abortion stance and his legislative performance as governor of Minnesota. Minnesota was the first state to codify abortion protections into law after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.

Bream asked Walz about Minnesota law, which does not set explicit deadlines for abortions, and whether he thinks Democrats should support national abortion access at any time.

“Look, the vice president and I have been clear about the restoration of Roe v. Wade is what we demand,” Walz replied.