Haley weighs in on abortion pill ruling: ‘I don’t want unelected judges deciding’
Ryan King
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Republican presidential hopeful Nikki Haley distanced herself from a recent ruling to suspend approval of a pill used for abortion.
Haley contended that elected officials rather than unelected judges should rule on heated matters like the legality of abortion pills and underscored the need to pursue “consensus.” Her remarks came while debuting her campaign’s “Women for Nikki” program in Des Moines, Iowa Wednesday.
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“What I mean is this is a personal issue for women and for men,” Haley said, the Des Moines Register reported. “It needs to be treated with the respect that it should. I don’t want unelected judges deciding something this personal.”
Last Friday, U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk from Texas ordered the Food and Drug Administration to suspend approval of mifepristone, a two-drug regimen to induce abortion. He gave the Biden administration seven days to appeal the ruling, which it did. Mifepristone is typically used in conjunction with a second pill, misoprostol, for abortion.
Many 2024 Republican hopefuls have been largely silent on the ruling. Though, former Vice President Mike Pence cheered the development as a victory for the anti-abortion movement.
Although a self-described anti-abortion candidate, Haley stressed that she doesn’t “judge anyone who is pro-choice any more than” her. She also called upon the states to sort through abortion policies.
“Let’s let the states work this out,” Haley said, per the outlet. “If Congress decides to do it — but don’t get in that game of them saying ‘how many weeks, how many’ — no. Let’s first figure out what we agree on and then move forward. This is about saving as many babies as we can. This is about supporting as many moms as we can.”
Republicans have seemingly been caught flat-footed by the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision in June to relegate abortion policy back to the states.
Fellow South Carolinian Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) urged the Biden administration to ignore the Texas ruling, which was at odds with another ruling out of a court in Washington.
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Haley is currently on her third major venture in the Hakweye State since launching her campaign in February.
On Wednesday, Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) announced the formation of a presidential exploratory committee, inching closer to a presidential run.