Claim:
In April 2024, former president of the United States Donald Trump stated that physicians who conduct abortions ought to be punished.
• Former U.S. President Donald Trump was asked by a reporter on April 10, 2024, whether he believed that physicians who perform abortions should be punished.
• Trump’s response to the reporter’s query was not explicit.
•In fact, Trump stated, “I would leave that to the states.” Currently, our actions revolve entirely around states and their privileges. It has been a struggle for the past 53 years, so our objective was to return it to the United States. The regions are currently managing the situation. Additionally, while some have handled it exceptionally well, others will ultimately do the same. “And it is regarding these matters that states will reach a conclusion.”
Former U.S. President Donald Trump responded to a reporter’s inquiry on April 10, 2024, regarding the potential punishment of physicians who perform abortions. Following the Arizona Supreme Court’s resurgence of an 1864 statute that outlawed nearly all abortions in the state, he delivered his remarks. Although not explicitly stated, the court opinion implied that physicians who perform abortions might face legal consequences under this legislation.
Several comments on X asserted that Trump advocated for the imprisonment and punishment of physicians who performed abortions. Certain individuals even asserted that he desired the authority to “personally” imprison physicians who performed abortions.
Additional users, such as Gavin Newsom, the Democratic governor of California, asserted that Trump advocated for the “permitting of states to imprison physicians for performing abortions.”
Trump, in actuality, expressed ambivalence regarding the matter. As a reply to the inquiry, he stated that the jurisdiction should be delegated to the individual states, thereby leaving the door open the possibility that a state could penalize a physician for performing an abortion.
The reporter, as captured on video and obtained by The Washington Post, allegedly inquired, “In your opinion, should a physician be sanctioned for performing abortions?”
President Trump replied, “I would leave that to the states.” Currently, our actions revolve entirely around states and their privileges. It has been a struggle for the past 53 years, so our objective was to return it to the United States. The regions are currently managing the situation. Additionally, while some have handled it exceptionally well, others will ultimately do the same. “And it is regarding these matters that states will reach a conclusion.”
Where the exchange is located:
The GOP issued a 2022 memo that stated unequivocally, “Republicans DO NOT wish to imprison mothers and doctors,” and “Mothers should be held harmless under the law,” according to The Washington Post. The memo was circulated as an effort by the Republicans to refute what they termed “lies” spread by the Democrats regarding their stance on abortion. Nonetheless, numerous proposals sponsored by the GOP at the time threatened physicians with imprisonment.
Additionally, the Post noted that Trump was not specifically questioned regarding the possibility of incarcerating physicians (as some social media posts assert), despite the fact that Arizona law threatens such a penalty. While he was questioned about punishment in general, the context was unmistakably Arizona.
The Post reports that in March and April 2024, Trump avoided a firm stance on abortion-related issues by focusing on states’ rights rather than adopting a stance on specific abortion laws. Nevertheless, it has been documented that he consistently ascribed approval to the reversal of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision that ensured universal access to federal abortion protections.
Trump’s position on the subject of abortion has undergone a significant transformation throughout the years. Without providing further details, he expressed his opinion on Arizona’s abortion ban on April 10, 2024, stating that it went too far and that the matter would be “straightened out.” “It is all about states’ rights,” he continued. Furthermore, if elected president, Trump stated he would not sign a nationwide prohibition on abortion, a complete reversal from his 2016 campaign and first term in office, when he advocated for a federal ban on abortion. A further statement he made in 2016 was that women who sought abortions “must face some form of punishment.”
