White House accuses DeSantis of ‘direct attack’ on freedom over proposed Florida abortion ban
The White House criticized Ron DeSantis on Tuesday over his support for a newly proposed bill in Florida that would ban abortions after six weeks, characterizing the Republican governor as a hypocrite in his commitment to personal freedoms.
In a statement to McClatchy and the Miami Herald, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that Florida’s proposed bill “would ban abortion before many women know if they are pregnant.”
“Politicians like Governor DeSantis espouse ‘freedom for all,’ while directly attacking the freedom to make one’s own health care decisions,” Jean-Pierre said. “This proposal is wrong and out of touch with the overwhelming majority of Americans, including Floridians, who support a woman’s right to choose.
“This ban would prevent not just the nearly four million Florida women of reproductive age from accessing abortion care after six weeks, but would also impact the nearly 15 million women of reproductive age who live in states across the South with abortion bans and would no longer be able to rely on Florida as an option to access care,” she added.
The proposed bill was filed on Tuesday at the beginning of Florida’s legislative session.
Last month, DeSantis was asked if he would sign a new abortion ban as well as legislation that would allow individuals in Florida to permit-less carry weapons.
“I’ve said on both of those, we’re for constitutional carry, we’re for pro-life,” DeSantis said. “I’ve urged the Legislature to work, to produce good stuff, and we will sign.”
On Tuesday, DeSantis described exceptions built into the new legislation “sensible,” adding, “we welcome pro-life legislation.”
This story was originally published March 7, 2023 at 12:58 PM with the headline "White House accuses DeSantis of ‘direct attack’ on freedom over proposed Florida abortion ban."
