Story highlights
- Trump said that women who get abortions should face "some form of punishment" if the practice is banned
- Clinton quickly linked Trump with other GOP candidates Ted Cruz and John Kasich
(CNN)Donald Trump's suggestion that women who get abortions should face "some form of punishment" if the practice is banned is giving the #NeverTrump movement new urgency.
Donald Trump: Abortion is a very serious problem 00:45
Faced
with the prospect of Trump as the party's standard bearer, Republicans
from across the ideological spectrum quickly condemned Trump's assertion
-- but not before Democrats showed the damage Trump's words could have on the GOP.
And in what was a clear acknowledgment of the stakes, Trump did something he has rarely done in this campaign -- back away from his statement within hours.
His
comments, which go against the GOP's anti-abortion stance, brought new
potency to the anti-Trump wing of the party, including conservative
radio hosts and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, looking to stop Trump in next week's primary. Trump was already facing a media uproar this week over his comments about Heidi Cruz and over his handling of an incident involving his campaign manager and a female reporter that led to an arrest summons.
Of
course, Trump has shown himself to be an unstoppable force who has
offended pretty much everyone at this point without much harm to his
poll numbers. But for Republicans worried about the damage Trump could
do at the top of the ticket with off-the-cuff or controversial quotes,
Democrats, including presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton, gave a harsh reminder.
"The Republicans all line up together," Clinton said in an interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper.
"Now
maybe they aren't quite as open about it as Donald Trump was earlier
today, but they all have the same position," she said, noting
anti-abortion positions taken by both John Kasich and Ted Cruz. "If you make abortion a crime -- you make it illegal -- then you make women and doctors criminals."
Clinton: Trump's comments on abortion 'unacceptable' 02:46
Wednesday's
controversy unfolded less than a week before the April 5 Wisconsin
primary, which will serve as a crucial test for the remaining GOP
candidates before the race returns east.
A new Marquette University Law School poll shows Cruz topping the field with 40% and Trump at 30%,
with Kasich at 21%. The poll was conducted March 24-28 before Trump's
statements about abortion and the arrest of his campaign manager, Corey
Lewandowski, yet happened after Trump targeted Heidi Cruz. Cruz also
leads among women, besting Trump 39% to 24%.
In
2012, Democrats linked GOP Senate candidates Todd Akin and Richard
Mourdock to the entire Republican Party — with devastating effect --
after they both made controversial remarks about rape and abortion. Liberal groups were quick to do the same with Trump's.
Emily's List, a group that backs female
candidates who support abortion rights, sent out a press release called
The Comstock-Trump Agenda: Criminalizing Abortion Edition. It targeted
Rep. Barbara Comstock, who is running for re-election in Virginia, a
swing state.
"Donald Trump is
leading the GOP charge to prevent women from making their own health
care decisions, and Barbara Comstock is standing right beside him," said
Emily's List press secretary Rachel Thomas.
Why I'm voting for Donald Trump
By suggesting that women who get an abortion should face punishment, Trump managed to unite advocates on both sides of the issue. Abortion opponents have pushed for punishment for doctors who perform abortions, but not women who receive them. That Trump struggled with this issue -- a core holding of these advocates — underscored for some that he is new to the conservative fight, an argument that his opponents have been making for some time to little effect.
By suggesting that women who get an abortion should face punishment, Trump managed to unite advocates on both sides of the issue. Abortion opponents have pushed for punishment for doctors who perform abortions, but not women who receive them. That Trump struggled with this issue -- a core holding of these advocates — underscored for some that he is new to the conservative fight, an argument that his opponents have been making for some time to little effect.
Asked
Wednesday by MSNBC's Chris Matthews whether a woman who got an abortion
illegally should face punishment, the current GOP front-runner said he
supported that idea.
Ben Carson defends Donald Trump's abortion answer 02:57
"Yes,
there has to be some form of punishment,"Trump said, adding that he
didn't know what form of punishment would be acceptable. He also said
that men involved in an unwanted pregnancy that led to an abortion would
not face any type of punishment.
Cruz, who has aired ads showing Trump in a 1999 interview
declaring himself "pro-choice," said Trump's comments were "wrong" and
that it showed the billionaire isn't up to the task to lead.
"It's
the latest demonstration of how little Donald has thought about any of
the serious issues facing this country," Cruz said after taping an
appearance on ABC's "Jimmy Kimmel Live" Wednesday night.
"I
am pro-life. Being pro-life means standing and defending the unborn,"
Cruz added. "But it also means defending moms. Defending women. And
defending the incredible gift women have to bring life into the world.
And Donald's comments, they were unfortunate, they were wrong and I
strongly disagree with it."
The anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony List framed Trump as a candidate who is new to the issue.
"As
a convert to the pro-life movement, Mr. Trump sees the reality of the
horror of abortion -- the destruction of an innocent human life -- which
is legal in our country up until the moment of birth," Marjorie
Dannenfelser, president of the group, said in a statement. "But let us
be clear: punishment is solely for the abortionist who profits off of
the destruction of one life and the grave wounding of another."
About
three hours after he spoke to MSNBC, Trump reversed course, issuing a
statement saying that his pro-life "position has not changed."
"If
Congress were to pass legislation making abortion illegal and the
federal courts upheld this legislation, or any state were permitted to
ban abortion under state and federal law, the doctor or any other person
performing this illegal act upon a woman would be held legally
responsible, not the woman," the statement said. "The woman is a victim
in this case as is the life in her womb."
That didn't mollify opponents who have seen him as a fake conservative who has been a no-show on the big conservative fights.
thats bad
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