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Ron DeSantis on Abortion

 

 


Endorsed as pro-life "authentic conservative"

Republican congressional hopeful Ron DeSantis won the support of prominent national conservative leader Phyllis Schlafly and the Eagle Forum PAC on Monday.

"Ron DeSantis is a Reagan conservative who will stand for limited government principles and traditional values," Schlafly said in a statement on Monday. "We must send authentic conservatives like Ron to Congress, not 'go along to get along' politicians who place expediency over principle. We cannot afford to elect anymore RINOs. Ron DeSantis represents a new generation of conservative leadership--he is pro-life, strong on marriage issues and is committed to bold reforms. He will be a leader in Congress and will be an articulate defender of the Constitution."

DeSantis said. "I am committed to reversing the Obama agenda and reasserting American sovereignty, limited government principles and religious freedom. I will be guided by the core values that have made America great."

Source: Press release on 2012 House campaign website voteRon2012.com , Jun 18, 2012

Ban abortions after fetal heartbeat detected

Q: Abortion: Mostly ban or mostly legal?

Ron DeSantis (R): Ban. Pledges to sign legislation banning abortions after fetal heartbeat detected (roughly 6 weeks) & to appoint constitutionalist justices to FL Supreme Court who will "protect & defend life."

Andrew Gillum (D): Legal. Abortion is a woman's unrestricted right and decision should be made by women & their doctors--not by politicians. Opposes making healthcare harder for women to access.

Q: Allow employers to withhold contraceptive coverage from employees if disagree with it morally?

DeSantis: Yes. Employers should not be required to "pay for abortifacients in violation of their faith."

Gillum: No. Proposes a law to protect women's access to no-cost contraceptive care under ObamaCare.

Q: Let Planned Parenthood receive public funds for non-abortion healthcare?

DeSantis: No. Voted for a bill to end funding.

Gillum: Yes. Challenged Rick Scott effort to defund Planned Parenthood.

Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide on Florida Governor race , Oct 9, 2018

Reject loosening law on late term abortions

We also need to stand by students with special needs and their families. That means eliminating the waitlist of 1,900 students for Gardiner Scholarships. The Gardiner scholarship is our way of saying that everyone counts and that these are lives worth living. And while we are at it, I wholeheartedly reject the callous disregard for human life displayed by the Governors of Virginia and New York. We won't allow that to happen in Florida.
Source: 2019 State of the State address to the Florida legislature , Mar 5, 2019

Anti-choice on abortion; pro-choice on vaccinations

Asked to compare and contrast "The Florida Heartbeat Act" (HB 167), a House bill banning abortions after the fetus develops a heartbeat, with what a reporter called "freedom of choice during the pandemic," DeSantis fumbled and offered an inconclusive answer. "Well, I think the difference is between the right to life is that another life is at stake. Whereas whether you've put something in your body or not, it doesn't affect other people," the Governor asserted.
Source: Florida Politics on 2022 Florida Gubernatorial race , Jul 1, 2021

FactCheck: Only 1.3% of abortions take place after 21 weeks

Much of the debate focused on the sharp divide in Florida when it comes to abortion rights with Crist promising to sign an executive order, if elected, to protect access for women. "I want to make sure we keep a woman's right to choose available to the women of the state of Florida," Crist said.

"He supports dismemberment abortions where they literally tear the baby limb from limb. And he supports taxpayer-funded abortion all the way up to the moment of birth, and that is wrong," DeSantis said. That claim is mostly false. The claim refers to the Women's Health Protection Act which passed along party lines after Roe v. Wade was overturned.

Crist voted with the majority on the measure that, technically, would make abortion legal up to birth. The Washington Post has pointed out this is more political than practical reality since just 5.5% of abortions take place after 15 weeks and 1.3% are performed at 21 weeks or later.

Source: WESH FactCheck on 2022 Florida Gubernatorial race , Oct 25, 2022

Rated 0% by Planned Parenthood, indicating a pro-life stance.

DeSantis scores 0% by Planned Parenthood abortion voting record - Planned Parenthood Action Fund 2015 Lifetime Score

Planned Parenthood provides reproductive services for women, including contraception, information on STDs, and abortion services. The organization receives federal funding, but not for abortion services. The organization scores legislators on their voting record on abortion rights.

Source: Planned Parenthood website 12-P-P on Jan 1, 2012

I consider myself pro-life.

DeSantis supports the PVS survey question on abortion

Project Vote Smart infers candidate issue stances on key topics by summarizing public speeches and public statements. Congressional candidates are given the opportunity to respond in detail; about 11% did so in the 2012 races.

Project Vote Smart summarizes candidate stances on the following topic: 'Abortion: Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation?'

Source: Project Vote Smart 12-PVS-q1 on Aug 30, 2012

No taxpayer funding of abortions via ObamaCare.

DeSantis voted YEA No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act

Heritage Action Summary: The No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act (H.R.7) would establish a permanent, government-wide prohibition on federal taxpayer funding of abortion and health benefits plans that include coverage of abortion, as well as prevent federal tax dollars from being entangled in abortion coverage under ObamaCare.

ACLU recommendation to vote NO: (1/22/2015): We urge voting against H.R. 7. The legislation is broad and deeply troubling and the ACLU opposes it [because] H.R. 7 would make discriminatory restrictions that harm women`s health permanent law. The bill singles out and excludes abortion from a host of programs that fulfill the government`s obligation to provide health care to certain populations. Women who rely on the government for their health care do not have access to a health care service readily available to women of means and women with private insurance. The government should not discriminate in this way. It should not use its power of the purse to intrude on a woman`s decision whether to carry to term or to terminate her pregnancy and selectively withhold benefits because she seeks to exercise her right of reproductive choice in a manner the government disfavors.

Cato Institute recommendation to vote YES: (11/10/2009): President Obama`s approach to health care reform--forcing taxpayers to subsidize health insurance for tens of millions of Americans--cannot not change the status quo on abortion. Either those taxpayer dollars will fund abortions, or the restrictions necessary to prevent taxpayer funding will curtail access to private abortion coverage. There is no middle ground.

Thus both sides` fears are justified. Both sides of the abortion debate are learning why government should not subsidize health care.

Legislative outcome: Passed by the House 242-179-12; never came to a vote in the Senate.

Source: Congressional vote 15-H0007 on Jan 22, 2015

Ban abortion after 20 weeks, except for maternal life.

DeSantis voted YEA Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act

Heritage Action Summary: This legislation will protect unborn children by preventing abortions five months after fertilization, at which time scientific evidence suggests the child can feel pain.

ACLU recommendation to vote NO: (Letter to House of Representatives, 6/18/2013): The ACLU urges you to vote against the misleadingly-captioned `Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act,` which would ban abortion care starting at 20 weeks of pregnancy. H.R. 1797 [2013 version of H.R.36 in 2015] is part of a wave of ever-more extreme legislation attempting to restrict a woman`s right to make her own decision about whether or not to continue a pregnancy. We have seen state after state try to take these decisions away from women and their families; H.R. 1797 would do the same nationwide. We oppose H.R. 1797 because it interferes in a woman`s most personal, private medical decisions. H.R. 1797 bans abortions necessary to protect a woman`s health, no matter how severe the situation. H.R. 1797 would force a woman and her doctor to wait until her condition was terminal to finally act to protect her health, but by then it may be too late. This restriction is not only cruel, it is blatantly unconstitutional.

Cato Institute recommendation to vote YES: (2/2/2011): Pro-lifers herald a breakthrough law passed by the Nebraska legislature on Oct. 15, 2010: the Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act prohibits abortion after 20 weeks gestation except when the mother has a condition which so `complicates her medical condition as to necessitate the abortion of her pregnancy to avert death or to avert serious risk of substantial or irreversible physical impairment of a major bodily function.` Versions of the Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act are [being] introduced in a number of state legislatures.

Legislative outcome: Passed by the House 242-184-6; never came to a vote in the Senate.

Source: Congressional vote 15-H0036 on May 13, 2015

Other governors on Abortion: Ron DeSantis on other issues:
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