Let’s cut to the chase here, shall we?
I hear Cancun is nice
Texas Democrats are making abortion rights a major campaign issue after Republicans in the state banned the procedure, and U.S. Rep. Colin Allred is casting Ted Cruz’s views as “extreme” in his bid to oust the senator.
Democrats haven’t won a statewide race in three decades, but abortion could be a weak spot for Cruz. Public polling shows a majority of Texas voters oppose an outright ban. Cruz, who is staunchly anti-abortion, has expressed support for Texas’ law that only has an exception in cases where the patient’s life is at risk.
Cruz doesn’t have a say in state laws, but members of both parties in Congress have at times floated national abortion legislation both before and after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. Allred said that, if elected, he would “fight for Texas women to get their freedom back.” He has supported efforts to codify abortion protections at the federeal level.
Cruz has largely avoided talking about abortion rights during this campaign. He declined multiple requests to answer questions about his stances on the procedure or how he would approach the issue if he wins another six-year term in the Senate.
Hearst Newspapers asked Cruz for an interview about abortion in July, which the senator turned down through a spokesperson. He also declined to answer eight written questions on the subject, including whether he would support a federal abortion ban and whether the federal government offers enough resources for low-income pregnant patients.
He also declined to say whether the state or federal government should clarify the emergency medical exception to Texas’ abortion ban. Dozens of women across Texas have reported that the abortion ban has prevented them from receiving necessary medical care, even when their life was at risk and the pregnancy was unviable, because doctors feared legal repercussions.
Cruz has, however, addressed some abortion questions in other public forums. After the Supreme Court threw out federal abortion protections in 2022, Cruz said the ruling was “nothing short of a massive victory for life.”
He’s avoided answering those questions because he knows his answers suck. We can get dragged into a debate about definitions and vibes and what counts as a “ban”, but all you really need to know is that the most radical forced-birth lobby groups out there think he’s an A+ Senator. If you want to restore and protect abortion rights and access in Texas and elsewhere, vote for Colin Allred. If you want the rest of the country to have Texas’ abortion laws, Ted’s your guy. It’s as simple as that.