Karrin Taylor Robson says she's for abortion for rape victims. Except when she's not

Great news for victims of rape and incest, as the state of Arizona enters a dark new world in which they no longer have control over their own bodies.

Karrin Taylor Robson says it's "extremely rare" that a rape victim will get pregnant, anyway, and so, presumably, they won’t be needing an exemption to the state’s abortion ban.

At least, that’s the way it sounded when she took to the airwaves last week, after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

Why didn't Robson answer the question?

Cue Taylor Robson’s interview with KTAR host Barry Markson:

“Let’s say there’s a 14-year-old girl who’s being raped by her stepfather and is now pregnant,” Markson asked. “In an Arizona where abortion is generally illegal, would that be an exception where an abortion is permitted in that circumstance?”

Here is how Taylor Robson responded: “I believe that life begins at conception and, quite frankly, the instance of pregnancies occurring in violent situations are extremely rare. In fact, it’s estimated that in less than 2% of those situations did pregnancy occur. I would go back to making sure that every woman, regardless of their age or circumstance, knows that there are non-violent choices available to them.”

Note that Taylor Robson didn’t directly answer the question. She dodged it and Markson, unfortunately, didn’t pin her down.

Her campaign assures me that Taylor Robson would support an exemption that allows victims of rape and incest to get an abortion.

Yet during Wednesday's Republican gubernatorial debate, Taylor Robson said she supports the state's pre-Roe abortion ban that makes no exception for abortion in cases of rape or incest.

So, by the way, did Kari Lake, who also has previously claimed she supports rape and incest exceptions. Except, apparently, when she doesn't.

The GOP response has not been to offer one

The Republican response of late has been to pass strict abortion laws that offer no relief to rape victims on the theory that they rarely get pregnant.

It’s difficult to pinpoint how often a rape victim becomes pregnant because so many attacks are never reported.

Taylor Robson was relying on a 2004 survey by Guttmacher Institute, which concluded that just 1% of abortions are the result of rape, and less than half a percent are the result of incest.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 3 million women in this country will experience a rape-related pregnancy in their lifetime. A 1996 study from the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology said a woman who is raped has a 5% chance of becoming pregnant.

Regardless of the frequency, shouldn’t these girls and women have a say in whether they want to have their attackers’ babies? Increasingly, the Republican Party is answering the question with a resounding "no".

Texas law, which Robson supports, offers no exception

The Taylor Robson campaign on Monday insisted that she supports exceptions to the ban on abortion in cases of rape or incest.

“Karrin has been an active member of the pro-life movement in this country for decades and strongly believes life begins at conception,” campaign spokesman Matthew Benson told me. “Karrin’s position is that abortion must be outlawed except when the pregnancy resulted from rape or incest or the mother’s life is in danger.”

That, however, is not what she said last Friday and it's not what she said during Wednesday's debate and it's not consistent with some of her other past statements.

Last summer, Taylor Robson lauded the passage of the “Heartbeat Act” in Texas, calling it “a victory for life.”

Just not much of a victory for rape victims. That Texas law stripped them of a right to an abortion.

In the wake of last week's Supreme Court ruling throwing the issue to states, Taylor Robson sounded like a rape exemption might not be in the cards on her watch.

“Let me be clear: I am a practicing Catholic and believe life begins at conception. ... The abortion prohibition approved by Republican legislators and signed into law by Gov. Ducey this year is appropriate.”

That law -- which apparently will be negated by the pre-Roe ban -- also makes no exception for victims of rape and incest.

Salmon is clear. Lake and Robson should be

Speaking of candidates who are bobbing and weaving, Lake’s campaign last week told The Arizona Republic that said she, too, would make an exemption to allow abortion in the case of rape or incest. But Lake also has endorsed the Texas “Heartbeat Act” and said she’d sign a carbon copy “in a Heartbeat”.

Both of these candidates need to come clean. I'm pretty sure there are plenty of voters who want to know where they really stand.

Reach Roberts at laurie.roberts@arizonarepublic.com. Follow her on Twitter at @LaurieRoberts.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Is Karrin Taylor Robson really OK with abortion exceptions?