Jake Tapper challenges Greg Abbott on Kamala Harris' abortion claims and rising infant deaths

WASHINGTON, DC: In a recent interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper, Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott faced pointed questions about his state's strict abortion laws and their potential consequences.

The discussion centered around a Texas law banning nearly all abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, a time when many women may not yet realize they are pregnant.

This law, among the strictest in the nation, has fueled intense debate over abortion rights and its impact on public health.

Study links rising infant deaths in Texas to recent abortion law changes

Jake Tapper highlighted a significant issue: a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) revealed a troubling increase in infant deaths in Texas between 2021 and 2022.

Tapper noted, “In June, CNN reported on a Journal of the American Medical Association pediatric study that found between 2021 and 2022, infant deaths in Texas surged 12.9 percent compared with a much smaller increase in the rest of the United States of 1.8 percent."

"And in that same period, infant mortality rates rose 8.3 percent in Texas compared with an increase of 2.2 percent in the rest of the nation. Are you concerned at all about a possible link between your state's abortion ban and these disastrous increases?” he added.

Greg Abbott dismisses study and shifts focus to late-term abortion claims

Governor Greg Abbott’s response was notably dismissive of the study. He replied, “So Jake, for one, I'm unfamiliar with that study and I don't know if for a fact it does tie a cause and effect relationship. For another, it leaves out the math of all the babies who survived and are alive. We have a record number of babies who are born now who did not lose their life to abortion.”

Abbott further argued, “This is an issue that you need to know. Kamala Harris is going to have to deal with, just like Democrats had to deal with in the state of Texas. Kamala Harris supports abortion to the very last second before a fully developed child in the mother's womb is born. That's late-term abortion. The baby can definitely feel the pain. The baby, if it survives one more minute, will be born, but instead will lose its life.”

Vice President Kamala Harris has condemned Iowa’s new six-week abortion ban, calling it “another Trump Abortion Ban.”

In a social media post, she declared, “In November, we will stop Trump’s extreme abortion bans at the ballot box.” Trump has boasted of his role in ending Roe v Wade, which allowed states like Iowa to impose strict abortion laws. The Iowa law, effective Monday, prohibits most abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy.

Jake Tapper questions Greg Abbott on alleged late-term abortions

Jake Tapper challenged Greg Abbott's statements by asking, “Where are these abortions being carried out up until the moment of birth? I keep hearing Republican politicians talking about that, and that's infanticide. I don't know where this is going on.”

Abbott responded by pointing to laws in other states, stating, “In many states, it is the law of the states. The law in California, where Kamala Harris is from, is the law in Minnesota, where Governor Walz is from. And Governor Walz, from reports I've seen, was even against a law that they had that would have required medical care for any baby who actually survives an abortion."

"That's something that needs to be looked into if he's against that because that would be another horrific policy by the Democrats and their zeal to try to kill young babies,” he added.