Republican Senator Lindsey Graham introduced legislation on Tuesday that would ban abortion after 15 weeks nationwide, with some exceptions. Graham said at a news conference: “I think we should have a law at the federal level that would say, after 15 weeks, no abortion on demand except in cases of rape, incest or to save the life of the mother.”  The bill is unlikely to receive a vote in the Democratic-controlled Senate, but Graham said that if Republicans took back the House and Senate in the midterm elections, there would be a vote on his bill:  “Abortion is a contentious issue. Abortion is not banned in America. It is left up to elected officials in America to define the issue.” 

However, many Republicans attacked the bill as a distraction that divides the GOP and reminds voters that most of them see the party as too extreme on abortion. Republican leaders, rank-and-file lawmakers and political strategists are distancing themselves from Graham.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement: “President Biden and congressional Democrats are committed to restoring the protections of Roe vs. Wade in the face of continued radical steps by elected Republicans to put personal health care decisions in the hands of politicians instead of women and their doctors, threatening women’s health and lives.” The U.S. Supreme Court in June overturned Roe vs. Wade in June, eliminating the federally protected right to abortion procedures, causing multiple states to move quickly to criminalize it.

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