O’Rourke: Decisions on late-term abortions ‘best left to a woman and her doctor’

Former Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-Texas), who announced his presidential candidacy last week, said Tuesday he would not infringe on a woman’s right to seek an abortion in a pregnancy’s third trimester.

“I think those decisions are best left to a woman and her doctor. I know better than to assume anything about a woman’s decision, an incredibly difficult decision, when it comes to her reproductive rights,” O’Rourke said to applause during a campaign stop at The Pennsylvania State University. 

At Penn State today, Beto was asked about his defense of third-trimester abortion. He doubled down: “I think those decisions are best left to a woman and her doctor. I know better than to assume anything about a woman’s decision . . . when it comes her to reproductive rights.” pic.twitter.com/3JNecJJni0

— Alexandra DeSanctis (@xan_desanctis) March 19, 2019

{mosads}The Texas Democrat’s answer echoed a similar one he gave to a question on late-term abortions Monday in which he said, “That should be a decision that the woman makes. I trust her.” 

O’Rourke shot to national prominence last year after a failed insurgent campaign to unseat Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) supercharged the Democratic base and broke midterm fundraising efforts.

He sought to maintain his juggernaut fundraising status in the presidential cycle, announcing on Monday that he had raised $6.1 million in his first 24 hours, narrowly beating out the 24-hour total of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and dwarfing that of the rest of the primary field.

But O’Rourke has faced criticism from the party’s progressive flank since his presidential announcement over what it says is a lack of specificity in his policies in the face of detailed platforms from candidates such as Sanders and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). 

O’Rourke has expressed openness to progressive priorities such as “Medicare for all” and increasing the number of justices on the Supreme Court, though has yet to put forth policies to turn those ideas into action should he be elected.