Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) said Sunday that last week’s Arizona Supreme Court decision banning nearly all abortions in the state was the result of actions taken by former President Trump while in office. Ta.
“First of all, let me say this has been a disaster for the women of Arizona. They have lost their fundamental right to an abortion, and it’s all Donald Trump’s fault,” Kelly said Sunday on CBS. He said this in an interview on “Face the Nation.”
“Donald Trump owns this. He said just yesterday that he broke Roe v. Wade, and because he did that, our courts are taking away this right and putting doctors in jail. “We were able to reinstate this draconian 1864 law of sending people,” Kelly added.
On Friday, President Trump said there was no need for federal laws restricting abortion because “we defeated Roe v. Wade,” adding that while many states have restricted access to abortion, states “have done a great job.” He said he is working on “.
His comments come as he has faced backlash all week after saying on Monday that abortion should be left to individual states to decide, but that he would not sign a federal ban. He also seems to have stated that he does not intend to do so.
President Trump has been especially vocal about his defense since an Arizona Supreme Court decision upheld an 1864 law and made it a felony to perform the procedure. The 100-year-old law criminalizes abortion, punishing anyone who performs or assists a woman with an abortion from two to five years in prison. This includes extremely narrow exceptions that allow abortion “if necessary” to save the pregnant person’s life.
The former president said the court’s ruling went too far and earlier Friday urged Arizonans to act “as soon as possible” to adjust the state’s abortion policy as Republicans in the state Legislature block attempts by Democrats to repeal abortion. appealed to state legislators. Act of 1864.
Kelly said in an interview Sunday that he hopes to win a ballot initiative to secure abortion rights this November. But he said the ruling will encourage Arizona voters to go to the polls anyway.
“My first concern is for women in Arizona and their health, and that women could die because of this 1864 ruling that was re-enabled by a former president. That’s my biggest concern. ” he said. “There will be an election in November. I think there will be a lot of participants because of this issue.”
“Margaret, I also want to point out that I don’t think this represents us in the state of Arizona. This is a moment, and we’re going to get through this. We have an opportunity to fix this in November.” he said.
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