HIGH POINT, N.C. (WGHP) — The GOP candidates vying for the nomination to run for North Carolina governor are weighing in on abortion.
Despite a prior reticence to continue speaking about his positions on abortion, Mark Robinson told a constituent at a Feb. 3 event in Pitt County that he would “absolutely” protect life from conception.
“We’ve got to do it that same way they rolled it forward, we’ve got to do it the same way with rolling it back. We’ve got it down to 12 weeks. The next goal is to get it down to 6, and then just keep moving from there, but I think the most important work we have to do, beyond that, is the work we’re going to do with crisis pregnancy centers. The work we’ll do with our adoption, daycare, all those systems,” he said in audio obtained by FOX8.
Crisis pregnancy centers are non-profits that “attract patients by offering free services such as onsite ultrasounds and STI testing; however, their primary purpose is to discourage abortion, often through manipulative and misleading tactics,” according to a report in the National Library of Medicine.
In an emailed request for further comment, spokesperson Michael Lonergan said:
“Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson supports legislation that would limit abortion after a heartbeat is detected, with protections for extreme situations such as rape, incest or when the life of the mother is in danger. He and his wife have struggled with this difficult and painful experience before and this is part of what makes him pro-life. You can learn more about their story here. On abortion, there’s only one extremist in this race: Josh Stein, who supports taxpayer-funded abortion on demand with no restrictions up until birth.”
PolitiFact, a nonprofit that reports on the accuracy of statements made by politicians and others in the political sphere, reported in December that there is no evidence to back up the claim that Stein supports “taxpayer-funded abortion on demand with no restrictions up until birth.” Asked for evidence by PolitiFact, Robinson’s campaign was unable to provide proof that the attorney general backs abortion up to birth without any restrictions.
Stein’s campaign pushed back on the characterization of Stein as extreme, with spokesperson Kate Frauenfelder saying, “Attorney General Stein supports the Roe v. Wade framework that protects women’s reproductive freedoms and restricts abortion later in pregnancy unless a woman’s life or health is at risk.
Time and again, Mark Robinson has made clear that he does not respect women and their right to make decisions about their own bodies. He supports a total ban on abortion with no exceptions – not for rape, incest or the life or health of the mother.”
When asked for his position on the issue, State Treasurer Dale Folwell said, “I have always been pro-life with the 3 exceptions. I also said last year that had I been Governor last year that I would have signed the 12-week bill.”
Folwell’s three exceptions refer to rape, incest and the health of the mother.
Attorney Bill Graham’s campaign said in a statement, “Bill Graham is pro-life and he supports the current law as enacted by the Republican leadership in the General Assembly.”
Jillian Riley, the director of public affairs for Planned Parenthood Votes South Atlantic, fired back at Robinson’s words and North Carolina’s restrictions in an interview with CBS17’s Michael Hyland, stating that “This is just another example that we know that Mark Robinson believes he should be in control of another person’s private healthcare decisions,” continuing on to say “if elected governor, he would pass a total ban on abortion in North Carolina.”
When asked about the statements about further limiting abortion access, Sen. Phil Berger (R-Rockingham County) told Hyland that he believes North Carolina passed a “very balanced law,” stating he doesn’t see the need to restrict access any further.
“If there are some technical things in there that need to be looked at, obviously we need to look at them. But I don’t see any wholesale changes, at least not from my perspective,” he said.
