Republicans have recently been forced to answer for their extreme anti-choice agenda in the public arena, and to nobody’s surprise, GOP candidates have been unable to defend their wildly unpopular views to the American people. On last night’s debate stage, Pennsylvania GOP Senate candidate Mehmet Oz made it very clear where he stands on abortion, stating that he believes “local political leaders” should be involved in making decisions about women’s reproductive health care.

Business Insider: “Mehmet Oz says abortion should be decided between ‘women, doctors, local political leaders’ during debate with John Fetterman”

People: “Dr. Oz Says Abortion Should Be Between ‘Women, Doctors, Local Political Leaders’ in Senate Debate”

HuffPost: “Dr. Oz Says Abortion Should Be Between Women, Doctors And… Local Politicians”

On Monday, Florida GOP Governor Ron DeSantis went so far as to say that he was “proud” of Florida’s abortion ban, and has run away from any other questions about his extreme views on stripping away women’s reproductive rights.

Washington Post: “[DeSantis] has been vague about his position on one fiercely debated topic: abortion restrictions. Asked Monday to specify at what point in pregnancy that abortion should be banned, DeSantis said he was ‘proud’ of Florida’s existing ban on the procedure after 15 weeks…”

Republican candidates like Senator Marco Rubio of Florida and J.D. Vance of Ohio used their debates to publicly endorse a national abortion ban bill introduced by South Carolina GOP Senator Lindsey Graham — with J.D. Vance calling it “totally reasonable.”

WMFE: “Rubio highlighted his support for legislation drafted by Republican Senator Lindsey Graham that would allow abortion through the first four months of pregnancy.”

Newsweek: “J.D. Vance, Ohio’s Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, said the national abortion bill proposed by South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham was ‘totally reasonable’  during Monday night’s debate against Democratic hopeful Tim Ryan.”

New Hampshire GOP Governor Chris Sununu and Iowa GOP Governor Kim Reynolds both tried skirting around tough debate questions on their dangerous anti-choice stances, but they couldn’t run from their records, which include championing strict anti-abortion bills in their states.

New Hampshire Bulletin: “Sununu touts New Hampshire’s abortion ban on national podcast”

Des Moines Register: “In 2018, Reynolds signed a law to ban abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy. At the time, it was the most restrictive anti-abortion law in the country. A court struck it down, but Reynolds has formally asked a state court to reinstate the law now that state and federal precedents protecting abortion rights have been overturned.”

Republicans know how extreme their views on abortion are — but they can’t help but run on them anyway, even if it means ripping away freedoms from millions of women.