Tim Scott dodges questions about a federal abortion ban

Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) danced around answering whether he supports a federal ban on abortion, instead arguing he is “100 percent pro-life” as he launched an exploratory committee for a possible 2024 presidential bid.

“I am certainly 100 percent pro-life without a question, I’ve been very clear about that,” Scott said when asked during an interview with CBS News whether he supports the 15-week federal ban on abortions that Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) has proposed. “I do think we spend not enough time understanding how far the far left has gone on the issue of abortion.”

But when pressed again on whether he thinks the federal government should get involved with a restriction similar to the one Graham is proposing, Scott dodged, pointing again to what he said was a campaign from the left to continue late-term abortions. 

Asked a third time whether he would support federal limits on abortions as president, Scott again returned to saying he was “100 percent pro-life.” CBS’s Caitlin Huey-Burns said “so, yes?”, to which Scott responded, “That’s not what I said.”

“I do believe we should have a robust conversation about what’s happening on a very important topic,” Scott said.

The gymnastics from Scott surrounding the questions on abortion comes as he moved one step closer to launching a White House campaign for 2024, opening an exploratory committee to consider the run. 

The issue of abortion has become increasingly prevalent on the campaign trail, especially following the ruling from the Supreme Court last year that eliminated federal protections for abortions. 

A slew of Republican-led states have moved to restrict abortion access, while Democratic lawmakers at the federal level have launched efforts to try to codify federal protections for the procedure into law.