GOP Rep. Nancy Mace Tells Fox News That DeSantis Went ‘Too Far’ on Abortion

Representative Nancy Mace (R-SC) told Fox News’ Neil Cavuto that her party needs to listen to voters and try to find common ground on abortion.

While the Republican Party is pushing strict bans on abortion, including a federal ban at 15 weeks, polling shows that voters disagree and support abortion rights more than ever. But even after the issue potentially contributed to an underwhelming GOP performance in the 2022 midterm elections, Republicans continue to push for stricter bans. One of the most rigid came out of Florida, where Governor Ron DeSantis (R) signed into law a ban on abortions after six weeks.

Mace told Cavuto on Your World with Neil Cavuto that she campaigned for her seat in Congress on exceptions for rape and incest “because I wanted women to know that I cared about them.” She further explained that if her party wanted to win back suburban women in 2024, they should find “middle ground”:

We have to show that we care about women at the same time that we care about life, and I’m trying to show a path forward and how you do that, Neil.

When asked by Cavuto if she supports a ban at a certain stage of pregnancy, she answered, “I’ve always said sort of, 15 to 20 weeks as long as we have exceptions for rape and incest.” That answer led to this exchange:

CAVUTO: Does a six-week move, like what Governor DeSantis just did in Florida, does that go too far to you?

MACE: It goes too far, and what that Florida bill also did is it mandated reporting of rape to the state. And those are things that, if you’re a victim of rape or a girl’s a victim of incest, those are very hard pills to swallow and it’s not supported by the vast majority of Americans. The vast majority of Americans support some sort of gestational limit in the second trimester.

According to the latest Gallup poll, Mace is correct:

A record-high 69% say abortion should generally be legal in the first three months of pregnancy. … Most Americans oppose abortion later in pregnancy, but the 37% saying it should be legal in the second three months of pregnancy and 22% in the last three months of pregnancy are the highest Gallup has found in trends since 1996.

It’s not the first time Mace has spoken out against her party’s stance on abortion. She told CNN’s Jake Tapper last month that if the GOP kept pushing stricter bans like Florida’s, they would “suffer in 2024.” Some critics say her messaging can be inconsistent because she supports bans, she just wants her party to be open to exceptions. She also called fellow Republican Rep. George Santos an abortion, but the context was much different.

Watch the clip above via CNN.