Donald Trump has reversed his comments saying a woman should be punished for receiving an abortion, stating his view hasn’t changed and if abortion were illegal the doctor should be punished.
Trump was grilled by Chris Matthews about his stance on abortion earlier Wednesday during an MSNBC town hall. Matthews asked Trump, “Should a woman be punished for having an abortion? This is not something you can dodge.”
Trump eventually responded, “The answer is that there has to be some form of punishment.” The New York real estate developer said that for women there “has to be some form.” What it would be specifically? He said, “that, I don’t know.”
In a statement released shortly after these comments were made public, Trump said if abortion were illegal, “the doctor or any other person performing this illegal act upon a woman would be held legally responsible, not the woman. The woman is a victim in this case as is the life in her womb.”
He added, “My position has not changed — like Ronald Reagan, I am pro-life with exceptions.
The correction comes after he received criticism from both people on both sides of the issue.
March for Life said in a statement Wednesday, “No pro-lifer would ever want to punish a woman who has chosen abortion. This is against the very nature of what we are about. We invite a woman who has gone down this route to consider paths to healing, not punishment.”