In response to Ron DeSantis bragging about his extreme abortion bans when asked about MAGA Republicans ripping away women’s freedoms in Texas, DNC National Press Secretary Sarafina Chitika released the following statement:

“If Kate Cox lived in Florida, Ron DeSantis’s cruel anti-abortion extremism could have her facing the same tragic situation that she faced in Texas — a fact he conveniently failed to mention this week when he dodged talking about the horrifying attack on women’s freedoms by MAGA Republicans in Cox’s home state. Since signing his abortion ban with no exceptions for rape or incest last year, DeSantis has only taken his anti-abortion extremism further by vowing to sign a national abortion ban. None of these attacks on women’s freedoms in Texas, Florida, or across the country would be possible without Donald Trump’s crusade to ‘kill’ Roe v. Wade – voters will reject the anti-freedom MAGA agenda of Trump and DeSantis next year, just as they have done time and time again since the fall of Roe.” 

WATCH:

When asked this week about the Texas Supreme Court blocking Kate Cox from getting an emergency abortion, DeSantis bragged about signing extreme abortion bans – and failed to mention that Cox might not be allowed to receive an emergency abortion under Florida’s laws.

CBS News: “Asked about the case of Kate Cox, a Texas woman who sought an abortion when her health deteriorated as she carried a fetus with a fatal condition, DeSantis was vague. He said ‘these are very difficult issues’ and pointed to the Florida law’s exceptions allowing abortions when the mother’s life is in danger, though in Cox’s case, the Texas Supreme Court ruled that her pregnancy complications did not constitute the kind of medical emergency under which abortions are allowed.”

Gary Fineout, Politico: “The 6-week ban has not yet taken effect. Fla’s current 15-week ban does not include an exception for rape and incest. DeSantis signed that measure into law as well.”

The Messenger: “When DeSantis was asked about Kate Cox, a Texas woman who just lost a battle with her state’s court system where she sought an abortion after learning her fetus had a fatal condition, the Florida governor said ‘these are very difficult issues.’

“DeSantis pointed to Florida’s abortion laws, which he helped institute, banning the procedure at 6-weeks. The Sunshine State also has exceptions to the law when the mother’s life is in danger, however, Cox was denied in Texas because the court deemed she did not meet the state’s exception requirements.”

DeSantis signed into law last year an extreme abortion ban with no exceptions for rape or incest that requires women in situations like Kate Cox’s to get written approval by two physicians to receive an abortion.

CNN: “Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law on Thursday a Mississippi-style anti-abortion measure that bans the procedure after 15 weeks of pregnancy without exemptions for rape, incest or human trafficking. The bill, which goes into effect July 1, does allow exemptions in cases where a pregnancy is ‘serious risk’ to the mother or a fatal fetal abnormality is detected if two physicians confirm the diagnosis in writing.”

Politico: “The state’s high court is currently weighing a challenge to last year’s 15-week ban, with plaintiffs arguing the law violates a decades-old state privacy clause that previous justices cited in upholding abortion protections. The state is enforcing the 15-week ban as the court considers the challenge.”

In practice, some pregnant women in Florida have struggled to get care due to the strict provisions of DeSantis’s abortion ban, finding themselves in situations similar to what Kate Cox faced in Texas. 

Orlando Weekly: “Middle school-aged incest victim was turned away from Florida abortion clinics under 15-week ban”

Washington Post: “Two friends were denied care after Florida banned abortion. One almost died.”

The abortion bans in Florida and Texas have created a fear of legal risk among physicians because the laws could charge doctors who provide abortion with severe consequences, including time in prison. 

CNN: “Florida law allows abortions after 15 weeks if two doctors confirm the diagnosis of a fatal fetal abnormality in writing, but doctors in Florida and states with similar laws have been hesitant to terminate such pregnancies for fear someone will question whether the abnormality was truly fatal. The penalties for violating the law are severe: Doctors can go to prison and face heavy fines and legal fees.”

Associated Press: “Under Texas’ bans, doctors who provide an abortion can face criminal charges that carry punishments of up to life in prison. They could also face lawsuits from private citizens, who are empowered to sue a person who helps a woman obtain an abortion, such as the doctor’s staff. The laws do not threaten the mother with any legal consequences.” 

DeSantis said he looked at Texas’ extreme abortion ban as a model when considering his own abortion ban proposals.

WESH: “At a stop Thursday, Gov. Ron DeSantis simply said he would look at what Texas did and see what, if anything, is proposed in Florida. ‘We’ve been able to to do pro-life legislation, I am pro-life, I welcome pro-life legislation,’ DeSantis said. ‘I’ve always been somebody who does support protections for life and the best that we can do.’”

CNN: “After the Supreme Court allowed the Texas law to take effect earlier this month, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis told reporters that he was supportive of more abortion restrictions, saying, ‘I’m pro-life. I welcome pro-life legislation.’ ‘What they did in Texas was interesting,’ the Republican governor said at the time. ‘I’m going to look a little more significantly at it.’”

Explicit exceptions for PPROM, a life-threatening health condition, were left out of both abortion bans DeSantis signed into law.

Washington Post: “[Florida] House Democrats introduced dozens of amendments during debate, including one that would have added an exception for several pregnancy complications that have been impacted by abortion bans. The amendment would have explicitly allowed doctors to induce or perform an abortion if a woman presents at a hospital with pre-viable PPROM, a life-threatening health condition that can lead to severe hemorrhage or infection.”

Washington Post: “The state’s Republican-led legislature is swiftly moving toward passing a far stricter law banning abortion after six weeks of pregnancy. The new measure — which passed the Florida Senate last week and is awaiting final passage in the House — adds exceptions for rape and incest but does not address PPROM. One of the sponsors of Florida’s 15-week abortion ban defended the current law as written, saying the existing exception should be sufficient to cover cases with serious health risks. An explicit exception for PPROM is not necessary, she added. ‘The bottom line is we value life, and we would like to protect life,’ said former Florida state senator Kelli Stargel. ‘We don’t want to give a gaping exception that anyone can claim.’”

Earlier this year, DeSantis signed an even more extreme law banning abortion in Florida before many women even know they’re pregnant and that maintained the requirement that two doctors approve and sign off on exceptions for fetal abnormality or life of the mother.

NBC News: “Ron DeSantis quietly signs Florida’s 6-week abortion ban into law”

Tampa Bay Times: “Late Thursday night, in a private ceremony in his office, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill to ban most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. … His office announced the signing in a highly unusual news release sent out after 11 p.m., then updated his schedule to say the ceremony happened at 10:45 p.m.”

CBS News: “The bill makes it a third-degree felony for physicians or anyone who ‘actively participate(s) in’ an abortion in violation of the ban. It also prohibits state funds being used in any way to help a woman get an abortion from another state, and using ‘telehealth’ or mail to receive abortion medication.” 

DeSantis has made clear he would sign a national abortion ban.

New York Times: “DeSantis Says He Would Sign a 15-Week Abortion Ban as President”

ABC News: “In an easily missed moment during Wednesday night’s chaotic GOP presidential primary debate, Gov. Ron DeSantis said he would sign a federal 15-week abortion ban.”

Radio Iowa: “On Saturday at the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition event, you said as president, you would support abortion restrictions at the state and the federal level. Would you sign the nationwide 15-week ban that the Faith and Freedom Coalition supports?”

DeSantis: “So I’ve said from the beginning of this, as president, you put pro-life legislation on my desk, I’m going to look favorably and support the legislation.”

DeSantis: “As president, I’m going to welcome pro-life policies across the board at both [state and federal] levels.”

Tucker Carlson: “You signed a ban on abortion after six weeks in Florida. Would you do the same as president, nationally?”

DeSantis: “Well, I’m very proud to say Kim Reynolds is here and she signed a great heartbeat bill today. We were able to do that in Florida. We had a lot of opposition to that. I’m proud to have been a pro-life governor and I will be a pro life-president, so of course I want to sign pro-life legislation.”

DeSantis: “Dobbs returned the issue to the elected representatives of the people. And so I think that there’s a role for both the federal and the states.”

DeSantis: “I’m a pro-life governor. I’ve signed pro-life legislation. I’ll be a pro-life president. … Of course, there’ll be executive actions.”

DeSantis also appointed members of the extreme anti-abortion group Alliance Defending Freedom to key positions, including a seat on the Florida Supreme Court.

Ms Magazine: “If you want just a little taste of where the conservative movement is headed, look at the Alliance Defending Freedom—a right-wing legal organization that has spearheaded the fight against abortion rights. The ADF is the group that overturned Roe v. Wade, and ended the era of legal abortion in the United States… They are currently trying to get the Supreme Court to overturn the FDA’s approval of mifepristone, a drug that has been on the market for decades and is safer than aspirin, because, they say, it’s dangerous—when in reality, they oppose it because mifepristone is an abortion drug.”

Tampa Bay Times: “Jamie R. Grosshans, the last-minute choice of Gov. Ron DeSantis to the Florida Supreme Court, is an anti-abortion defender who has been active in a number of Christian legal groups, including a powerful national organization whose mission is to ‘spread the Gospel by transforming the legal system… Both times Grosshans applied to the state’s high court, she left out some details on her application: specifically her membership in the Alliance Defending Freedom.”

Alliance Defending Freedom: “Gov. DeSantis appoints ADF Senior Counsel Denise Harle to Florida Faith-Based and Community-Based Advisory Council”