The Republican governor of Virginia, Glenn Youngkin, believes the decision about whether or not to restrict abortion rights should be left up to individual states.
Youngkin, who stated he is a “pro-life governor,” is working to pass legislation in Virginia that would criminalize abortion after 15 weeks.
However, it would make exceptions for situations including rape, incest, and threats to the mother’s health. He has high hopes a bill will be passed when the state legislature resumes its session in the month of January.
Talking abortion at @TexasTribune Festival, Youngkin as was asked if he'd push for a stricter ban if he was governing a redder state.
He said he firmly supports exceptions for cases of rape, incest and when the mother's health is at risk.
— Graham Moomaw (@gmoomaw) September 23, 2022
Total State Freedom
However, Youngkin is opposed to the federal government interfering in states where Democrats control the government in order to restrict access to abortion services.
This includes rejecting the proposal made by Senator Lindsey Graham to make the practice illegal across the country after the first 15 weeks of pregnancy.
Youngkin stated on Friday that the circumstances we find ourselves in currently are a direct reflection of what he considers to be a very sound decision by the Supreme Court to remand to the states the right to make these judgments.
Watch Glenn Youngkin speak at the 2022 Texas Tribune Festival https://t.co/pN0kwL2B9D
— Wallup Daily News (@Brospar2022) September 23, 2022
He expressed his opinion that the choice made was the appropriate one. Voters and citizens should be the ones to make this decision.
Roe v. Wade was overturned by the Supreme Court in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. National protections for abortion rights were removed as a result. The decision was handed down at the end of June.
The Rights of Individual States
Expanded access to abortion services is a Democratic priority. This involves making the operation available late in the third trimester of childbirth, all the way up until the time of delivery.
Youngkin recognized his dedication to states’ rights would make it possible for such abortions to keep going in blue states.
This, in the aftermath of the Dobbs court decision, led to Democrats lauding themselves as a safe haven for women who require access to the operation, but are barred from gaining it where they live.
Youngkin stated he wants to remind everyone that he is a native Virginian. There have always been a few impactful Virginians who were active in the formation of this great country.
One of these Virginians was a nobleman named Thomas Jefferson. He was a supporter of the rights of individual states. He went on to say that the federal government routinely overextends its bounds.
Therefore, states actually have the responsibility to deal with these situations, depending on the demands of their citizens; he concluded that this is one of those instances.
In November of 2021, Youngkin was victorious in the Virginia governorship race, taking control of a blue state that previously favored Biden above former President Trump by a margin of ten percentage points.
