Past comments about abortion by Republican Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio resurfaced online this week as he is a possible candidate to join former President Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential running mate.
Vance, a one-time critic of Trump who has since become a staunch supporter of the 45th president, came under fire from Democrats during the 2022 U.S. Senate campaign for comments that fact checkers determined were taken out of context by Democratic opponent Tim Ryan, and this old story has surfaced. This week’s Drudge ReportA well-known news aggregator that once supported Trump but later turned against him.
In 2021, Vance defended a Texas law banning most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. Asked at the time by Spectrum News in Columbus, Ohio, whether he supported exceptions to abortion in cases of rape and incest, Vance said he disagreed with the premise of the question, saying “two wrongs do not make one right.”
“After all, we are talking about unborn babies. What kind of society do we want? One that sees unborn babies as an inconvenience to be discarded?…The question is not whether a woman should be forced to give birth, but whether that child should be allowed to live, even if the circumstances of that child’s birth are inconvenient or problematic for society.” Vance says.
Senator Vance rages at CNN’s onslaught over Trump conviction: ‘It’s the end of our country as we know it’
Republican Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio speaks to reporters outside Manhattan Criminal Court, Monday, May 13, 2024, in New York. (Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“The question for me is about the baby,” Vance added, according to The Washington Post. “We want to give women opportunity, we want to give them choices, but most of all, we want to give women and unborn boys the right to live.”
During a 2022 Ohio Senate debate, Ryan accused Vance of saying rape was an “inconvenience.”
“JD, you said rape is an ‘inconvenience,’ right?” Ryan said. “Rape is not an inconvenience. It is a major tragedy and he believes there should be an Ohio law that forces women who are raped or conceived as a result of incest to give birth to the child.”
Vance countered that he never called rape an “inconvenience” and that Ryan knew that was a false statement. He said at the debate that he was pro-life as long as there were “reasonable exceptions.” He also said that he supported Sen. Lindsey Graham’s 15-week abortion ban that same year, with exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother.
Vance also accused Ryan of being an extremist on abortion, and has since back-pedalled on the issue. In a closely fought election, Vance defeated Ryan by six points. Since then, Vance has reportedly risen to become one of the front-runners to become Trump’s running mate.
Senate Democrats test abortion issue to overcome Biden concerns
JD Vance said in an interview with CNN. (CNN)
PolitiFact Review In his comments at the time, Ryan concluded: “Vance never directly said ‘rape is inconvenient’. However, when asked whether abortion should be legal for rape and incest victims, he suggested that society should not view pregnancy and childbirth as a result of rape or incest as ‘inconvenient.'”
This week, CNN Fact Check He accused President Biden’s campaign of misrepresenting Vance’s past comments praising the Heritage Foundation as a full endorsement of Project 2025, a lengthy policy document that includes a proposal for a nationwide abortion ban that has come under heavy criticism from the left in recent weeks.
Last year, Governor Vance called the success of an abortion-rights referendum in Ohio a “shock” and urged Republicans to do more to win voters’ trust on the issue. In December, he told CNN he supported exceptions for “the life of the mother, rape, etc.”
Vance’s recent comments on abortion have put him more in line with Trump, including agreeing with the former president’s position that since the repeal of Roe v. Wade, abortion laws are left to states to decide.
“Donald Trump is a pragmatic leader here. He says abortion policy should largely be decided by the states. He wants to start by making it easier and more affordable for young women and parents to start a family,” Vance told “Meet the Press” on Sunday.
Vance also said this week that he supports the Supreme Court’s decision to give Americans access to the abortion drug mifepristone.
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Vance’s office Fox News Digital.
David Rutz is a senior editor at Fox News. Follow him on Twitter: @davidrutz.
Trump VP finalist JD Vance under scrutiny for past abortion comments
Past comments about abortion by Republican Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio resurfaced online this week as he is a possible candidate to join former President Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential running mate.
Vance, a one-time critic of Trump who has since become a staunch supporter of the 45th president, came under fire from Democrats during the 2022 U.S. Senate campaign for comments that fact checkers determined were taken out of context by Democratic opponent Tim Ryan, and this old story has surfaced. This week’s Drudge ReportA well-known news aggregator that once supported Trump but later turned against him.
In 2021, Vance defended a Texas law banning most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. Asked at the time by Spectrum News in Columbus, Ohio, whether he supported exceptions to abortion in cases of rape and incest, Vance said he disagreed with the premise of the question, saying “two wrongs do not make one right.”
“After all, we are talking about unborn babies. What kind of society do we want? One that sees unborn babies as an inconvenience to be discarded?…The question is not whether a woman should be forced to give birth, but whether that child should be allowed to live, even if the circumstances of that child’s birth are inconvenient or problematic for society.” Vance says.
Senator Vance rages at CNN’s onslaught over Trump conviction: ‘It’s the end of our country as we know it’
Republican Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio speaks to reporters outside Manhattan Criminal Court, Monday, May 13, 2024, in New York. (Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“The question for me is about the baby,” Vance added, according to The Washington Post. “We want to give women opportunity, we want to give them choices, but most of all, we want to give women and unborn boys the right to live.”
During a 2022 Ohio Senate debate, Ryan accused Vance of saying rape was an “inconvenience.”
“JD, you said rape is an ‘inconvenience,’ right?” Ryan said. “Rape is not an inconvenience. It is a major tragedy and he believes there should be an Ohio law that forces women who are raped or conceived as a result of incest to give birth to the child.”
Vance countered that he never called rape an “inconvenience” and that Ryan knew that was a false statement. He said at the debate that he was pro-life as long as there were “reasonable exceptions.” He also said that he supported Sen. Lindsey Graham’s 15-week abortion ban that same year, with exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother.
Vance also accused Ryan of being an extremist on abortion, and has since back-pedalled on the issue. In a closely fought election, Vance defeated Ryan by six points. Since then, Vance has reportedly risen to become one of the front-runners to become Trump’s running mate.
Senate Democrats test abortion issue to overcome Biden concerns
JD Vance said in an interview with CNN. (CNN)
PolitiFact Review In his comments at the time, Ryan concluded: “Vance never directly said ‘rape is inconvenient’. However, when asked whether abortion should be legal for rape and incest victims, he suggested that society should not view pregnancy and childbirth as a result of rape or incest as ‘inconvenient.'”
This week, CNN Fact Check He accused President Biden’s campaign of misrepresenting Vance’s past comments praising the Heritage Foundation as a full endorsement of Project 2025, a lengthy policy document that includes a proposal for a nationwide abortion ban that has come under heavy criticism from the left in recent weeks.
Last year, Governor Vance called the success of an abortion-rights referendum in Ohio a “shock” and urged Republicans to do more to win voters’ trust on the issue. In December, he told CNN he supported exceptions for “the life of the mother, rape, etc.”
Vance’s recent comments on abortion have put him more in line with Trump, including agreeing with the former president’s position that since the repeal of Roe v. Wade, abortion laws are left to states to decide.
“Donald Trump is a pragmatic leader here. He says abortion policy should largely be decided by the states. He wants to start by making it easier and more affordable for young women and parents to start a family,” Vance told “Meet the Press” on Sunday.
Vance also said this week that he supports the Supreme Court’s decision to give Americans access to the abortion drug mifepristone.
Click here to get the FOX News app
Vance’s office Fox News Digital.
David Rutz is a senior editor at Fox News. Follow him on Twitter: @davidrutz.
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