South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem defended her state’s criminalization of abortions even in the case of “horrific”CNN’s Sunday show featured child rape.
Asked multiple times by CNN’s Dana Bash whether South Dakota would force minors to cross state lines to terminate pregnancies resulting from rape, as a 10-year-old Recently, in Ohio, Noem deflected.
“What’s incredible is that nobody’s talking about the pevert, horrible and deranged individual that raped a 10-year-old, and what are we doing about that?”Noem answered.
Bash asked the governor again. “This tragedy is horrific, I can’t even imagine, I’ve never had anybody in my family or myself gone through anything like this… but in South Dakota, the law today is that abortions are illegal except to save the life of the mother.”
Bash then pointedly inquired if she would. “be okay with a 10-year-old girl having to have a baby,”Noem then replied: “No, I’m never okay with that. In fact, that story will keep me up at night.”
Despite this, “breaks my heart,” Noem said she would not attempt to add an exception for such victims to her state’s draconian policy. “I don’t believe a tragic situation should be perpetuated by another tragedy,”She repeated a phrase used by anti-abortion activists often, she said.
South Dakota currently allows abortion only if the pregnancy is not at term. Bash stated that giving birth to a child would be a risk for any child. “Would you consider that the life of a mother at risk?”
Noem did answer but not directly, stating that the final decision was up to “the doctors, the family, the individuals closest to that [situation]” “the legislators closest to the people”They govern.
South Dakota is just one of many states that has this ability. “trigger laws”Set to take effect immediately following Roe v. Wade’s repeal Under House Bill 1318, last week’s SCOTUS decision codified the banning of abortion by telemedicine and ramped up punishments for the unlicensed practice of medicine when administering a medical abortion in the state. Except for “[preserving] the life of a pregnant female,”South Dakota now has an abortion ban
In Arkansas, Wisconsin, and Missouri, trigger laws were also in effect. More states will follow this week.
