On abortion, sparring Republican presidential candidates unite behind unpopular pro-life stands at debate

Ramaswamy won! Everyone ignored DeSantis! Trump beat ‘em all by not showing up!

The main storylines from Wednesday’s first Republican presidential debate centered on how the clash affected the GOP horserace especially jockeying for second place behind former President Donald Trump.

Flying under the radar was the candidates’ vow to roll back abortion rights, a stance that’s proven unpopular with the American electorate.

Former Vice President Mike Pence passionately declared his support for a national ban on abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy to start, a move that would impact New York women who now enjoy the right to decide whether to have an abortion.

“It’s a moral issue,” he thundered.

Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, who otherwise drew criticism for a debate snoozy performance, was just as outspoken, asking why unborn babies in “California, New York and Illinois” should not have the same protection as those in Republican-run states.

Ron DeSantis dodged the question about a national ban, but said he was proud of enacting a ban in Florida on abortion after six weeks of pregnancy, when many women don’t even know they are pregnant.

The GOP candidates’ unity underlined what could be one of the biggest liabilities for the Republican Party heading into the 2024 election: their staunch pro-life stance has produced bad outcomes for the GOP from red and blue states coast to coast.

Democrats and pro-choice advocates say the GOP candidates are digging a hole for their party in the coming crucial fight for Congress as well as the 2024 presidential race, no matter who wins the nomination.

“The Republican Party is willing to say and do anything ... even as their bans wage immeasurable harm on Americans,” said Mini Timmaraju, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America. “That’s why we will fight like hell to ensure President Biden and Vice President (Kamala) Harris remain in the White House.”

Democratic Rep. Pat Ryan burst onto the national scene with an upset win in a Hudson Valley special election just weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion.

Now Ryan is doubling down on his pro-choice stance as he seeks a second full term in a neighboring swing district in New York City’s far northern suburbs.

“The entire debate highlighted how far MAGA Republicans are willing to go to impose a nationwide abortion ban,” Ryan told the Daily News. “The choice in 2024 couldn’t be more clear.”

Biden’s reelection campaign Friday put out an anti-abortion ad slamming the GOP candidates, including the absent frontrunner Trump. for their outspoken anti-abortion stands.

“Reproductive health care decisions are the most personal a woman faces,” the ad intones. “The last people who should be involved are these guys.”

When it comes to abortion, it’s not just blue-state liberals talking smack, either.

Since Roe v. Wade was struck down, at least six states, including Republican strongholds like Kansas and Ohio, have voted for pro-choice side of statewide referendums.

Democrats credit anger over abortion rollbacks for blunting what might otherwise have been sweeping losses in the midterm elections.

Opinion polls consistently say about 60% of Americans believe abortion should be mostly legal, a landslide agreement in a country that is divided down the middle on most issues.

But Republican leaders have continued to barrel ahead with pro-life measures in states they control, drowning out pleas for a more nuanced position from some GOP moderates and women.

The only modest break from pro-life orthodoxy at the GOP debate came from former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley.

Even though Haley brags of being “unapologetically pro-life,” she said she wouldn’t push a national ban because it would be unlikely to pass the Senate, where 60 votes would be required to overcome a certain filibuster.

She instead insisted she would seek some “consensus” on the issue before moving forward.

Haley’s position on abortion is somewhat similar to that of Trump.

The dominant frontrunner in the race has sought to avoid specifics on abortion although he often takes credit for installing the three Supreme Court judges that created a majority to rollback the right to choose.

Trump recently dinged DeSantis for enacting the six-week ban that he called “too harsh.”

He has privately told aides he considers the issue a “loser” for Republicans, a position that is backed by poll after poll and a string of elections in several states of various political stripes.