Arkansas Guv Brushes Off Rape and Incest Exceptions to Abortion Ban
The state’s sole exception is if a pregnant woman’s life is under risk.
Steven Ferdman/Getty
WATCH: Arkansas banned abortions except to save the mother’s life. @ChuckTodd: “If a 13yo in Arkansas is raped by a relative, that 13yo cannot get an abortion in Arkansas, are you comfortable with that?” @AsaHutchinson: “For now the law triggered with only one exception.” pic.twitter.com/ootw7yq0zU
— Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) June 26, 2022
Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson said the state has no plans to add more exceptions to its abortion ban—even if a minor is assaulted by a family member. The Republican governor appeared on NBC’s Meet The Press on Sunday where he was pressed by host Chuck Todd on the state’s sole exception to its abortion ban: only a medical emergency threatens a mother’s life. “If a 13-year-old in Arkansas is raped by a relative, that 13-year-old cannot get an abortion in Arkansas,” Todd asked. “Are you comfortable with that?” Hutchinson said the matter was “not the debate today in Arkansas.” “This is going to continue to be discussed, but the only exception in Arkansas is to save the life of the mother.” Arkansas is one of the multiple states that had “trigger laws” to ban abortions once Roe v. Wade was overturned.
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