Days after coming under conservative fire for making vaguely pro-choice comments, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) released a letter reaffirming his anti-abortion bona fides and endorsing a ban on the procedure after 20 weeks of pregnancy.
"In my past four years as governor, we have made substantial progress in the fight for our pro-life values in Wisconsin," the potential GOP presidential candidate wrote Tuesday. "We defunded Planned Parenthood. We prohibited abortion from being covered by health plans in a health exchange. ... As the Wisconsin legislature moves forward in the coming session, further protections for mother and child are likely to come to my desk in the form of a bill to prohibit abortions after 20 weeks. I will sign that bill when it gets to my desk and support similar legislation on the federal level."
The letter takes a much more vigorously conservative tone than Walker did on “Fox News Sunday” this past weekend.
When host Chris Wallace asked if he believed that abortion is ultimately a woman's choice, Walker had responded, "Well, legally that’s what it is under the guidelines that were provided from the Supreme Court."
When asked if he would change the law, he said, “Well, that’s not a change you can make. The Supreme Court ultimately made that.”
Conservative groups jumped in with sharp criticism of Walker's mild answers.
"Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker just gave what I can safely call the very worst interview on the life issue I have seen from a Republican in recent memory,” Frank Cannon, president of American Principles in Action, said in a press release Monday. “Claiming you are impotent to act on your core principles is neither true nor wise. What about advocating for a ban on abortions after 20 weeks? That’s a law that has already been passed in 12 states, which the Republican National Committee endorses, and which most of Walker’s fellow Republican presidential candidates also support, Jeb Bush included."
Last Sunday wasn't the first time Walker has shied away from taking a firm stance against abortion. During his 2014 re-election campaign, Bloomberg noted, he would not directly answer the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's question about whether he would sign legislation restricting abortion access.
With another hot topic, Walker did a much better job of toeing the Republican line on Sunday. He told Wallace that he has completely changed his views on immigration and now takes a hardline stance against amnesty.
Before You Go
