Carson Wants to Overturn Roe v. Wade

Ben Carson said he would “love” to see Roe v. Wade overturned, during an interview on Meet the Press on Sunday. “I’m a reasonable person and if people can come up with a reasonable explanation of why they would like to kill a baby, I’ll listen,” Carson said. He opposes abortions for cases involving rape and incest but could make an exception to allow for the health and safety of the mother.

“That’s an extraordinarily rare situation. But if in that very rare situation it occurred, I believe there’s room to discuss that,” Carson said. He had previously suggested that women who were victims of rape or incest should be allowed to take an “abortion pill,” referring to RU-486.

“I would hope that they would very quickly avail themselves of the emergency room, and in the emergency room, they have the ability to administer RU-486 and other possibilities before you have a developing fetus,” he said in an August interview.

Just last week, Carson didn’t directly answer a question about whether he would like to see Roe v. Wade overturned. “I favor life. That’s what I favor,” Carson said when asked about the Supreme Court case. He claimed that he would appoint Supreme Court justices who “understand that a baby in the uterus is a human being and is protected by the Constitution.” Carson’s campaign has not responded to a request for comment on why he decided to directly answer the question now.

—Gideon Resnick