RNC Chair Ronna McDaniel ‘very pleased’ with Republican debate abortion talk
Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said Thursday that she was glad the party’s top candidates grappled with each other over abortion during Wednesday’s first primary debate.
“I was very pleased to see them talk about abortion,” McDaniel told Fox News. “If our candidates aren’t able to fend a response and put out a response, we’re not going to win. They’re going to do it again in 2024. And I thought all of them did a really good job on that.”
McDaniel underscored that Democrats successfully weaponized the abortion issue during the 2022 midterm elections following the Supreme Court’s overturn of Roe v. Wade.
The debate exposed fault lines among the candidates over the issue, particularly on the question of a nationwide abortion ban.
Former Vice President Mike Pence, Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) and former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson have all called for such restrictions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, winning them support from the prominent Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America organization.
Former Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley had called for finding consensus on abortion, warning that Republicans would be unable to push a federal ban through the Senate given the 60-vote threshold needed to overcome a filibuster.
“To be honest with you, Nikki — you’re my friend, but consensus is the opposite of leadership,” Pence said. “It’s not a states-only issue. It’s a moral issue.”
“When you’re talking about a federal ban, be honest with the American people,” Haley countered, referencing the filibuster. “Do not make women feel like they have to decide on this issue.”
McDaniel contended that the back-and-forth was healthy for the party and underscored points of agreement among the candidates.
“I do think they all had a consensus that as a country, we should all say when a baby feels pain at 15 weeks, we should all agree that this is a bridge too far and we should not be having abortions,” she said.
“And then they called out the extremism of the Democrats, who support due-date abortions and gender-selected abortions.”
Over recent months, Republicans have suffered a string of ballot-box losses on abortion.
Earlier this month, Ohio voters rejected a measure to increase the threshold needed to amend the state’s constitution. By doing so, they removed a potential obstacle for abortion rights activists who are pushing a referendum later this year to enshrine abortion rights in the Buckeye State.
Last year, Kansas voters rejected a constitutional amendment that would have cleared the way for the state legislature to overturn a 2019 state Supreme Court decision that protected the procedure in the Kansas Bill of Rights.
A torrent of polls further indicates that the public is opposed to heavy restrictions on abortion.
Some 53% of voters oppose a federal law banning abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy, according to a New York Times/Siena College poll released earlier this month.
