Arkansas governor: Abortion law 'could be revisited' for rape and incest exceptions

Merdie Nzanga, USA TODAY
·2 min read
4

WASHINGTON - Arkansas Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson said he thinks the state's abortion law will be "revisited" to add rape and incest as exceptions if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade.

"While it's still life in the womb, life of the unborn, the conception was under criminal circumstances, either incest or rape, and so those are two exceptions I have to recognize I believe are very appropriate," he said on CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday.

"As time goes on, if Roe versus Wade is reversed, these are going to become very real circumstances," Hutchinson said, adding that the debate "very well could be revisited."

Arkansas' law is triggered by the overturning of Roe v. Wade It allows abortion only if the mother's life is in danger.

His comments come as the debate on abortion has increased after a Supreme Court draft opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade leaked earlier this month. That sparked outrage from many abortion rights supporters across the country, including nationwide protests.

ABORTION AND COMMUNION: 'Grave evil': Pelosi denied Holy Communion by San Francisco archbishop for pushing abortion rights

Several Republican-led states have been pushing for strict abortion laws.Last week, Oklahoma became the latest, when Gov. Kevin Stitt signed into law legislation that immediately bans abortion around the six-week mark of pregnancy.

Some states have anti-abortion laws written before 1973 that were never removed. Other states have six-week abortion bans, eight-week abortion bans and constitutions that have been amended to prohibit any protection for abortion rights. These laws will immediately go into effect if the Supreme Court overrules Roe v. Wade.

Hutchinson said on ABC earlier this month that he would "prefer the rape and incest exceptions" be in Arkansas' law.

"Even though we have the trigger law, I expect those exceptions to be a significant part of the debate in the future," he said on ABC's "This Week" on May 8

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson wants exceptions in abortion trigger law