As Republicans in the Senate bring forward a bill next week that would ban most abortions after 20 weeks of gestation—when babies are capable of feeling pain and can survive outside the womb—Senate minority leader Harry Reid declined to say whether he supports any limits on abortion during any moment of pregnancy. The Nevada Democrat has characterized himself as pro-life in the past, having stated his opposition to Roe v. Wade and having voted for the ban on partial-birth abortions (which bans a particular procedure but does not protect human life at any stage of development).
But at a press conference in the Capitol Wednesday, Reid says he won’t support the GOP bill. “If you dissect this bill they have, no reasonable person could vote for this,” he said. “It’s a bad bill, and I can’t imagine anyone wanting to vote for it.”
Reid offered his theory of why GOP leader Mitch McConnell is bringing up the bill next week. “He’s doing it for reasons I’m not sure anyone appreciates. But he’s doing it because the pope’s coming here,” said Reid. Pope Francis will visit the nation’s capital next week and will address members of Congress.
Asked twice by THE WEEKLY STANDARD if there should be any limits to when an abortion is performed, Reid, encouraged by fellow Democratic senators Dick Durbin and Chuck Schumer (who were standing behind him), declined to answer.
“So you’re not willing to say whether there should be limits on when an abortion should be?” asked TWS.
“The question’s on this bill,” Reid said. “And this bill’s going nowhere.”
Reid’s counterpart in the House of Representatives, minority leader Nancy Pelosi, has also refused to answer questions about late-term abortions and was unable to explain the difference between that practice and infanticide.
