Scott Walker presidential campaign, 2016/Abortion

	; ; Former presidential candidate; Scott Walker
	Political offices: ; Governor of Wisconsin; (2011-2019); Milwaukee County Executive; (2002-2010); Wisconsin State Assembly; (1993-2002)
	Walker on the issues:
	Taxes • Government regulations • International trade • Budgets • Agricultural subsidies • Federal assistance programs • Foreign affairs • Federalism • Natural resources • Healthcare • Immigration • Education • Abortion • Gay rights
	Republican candidate:
	Donald Trump
	Ballotpedia's presidential election coverage; 2028 • 2024 • 2020 • 2016

Scott Walker suspended his presidential campaign on September 21, 2015.^[1]

Ballotpedia's scope changes periodically, and this article type is no longer actively created or maintained. It may also contain neutrality issues.

This page was current as of the 2016 election.

In September 2015, at the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition Dinner, Scott Walker said that instead of causing a government shutdown, the House and Senate could get a majority vote of 51 and pass a spending bill designed to defund Planned Parenthood, according to The Des Moines Register. Walker told the audience: "As president, I will stop funding for Planned Parenthood immediately." He also added that he would redirect the money that Planned Parenthood receives to other women's healthcare organizations that do not perform abortions.^[2]

During the Republican debate on September 16, 2015, Scott Walker addressed defunding Planned Parenthood. He said, "Now, I — like so many other governors here, I defunded Planned Parenthood four-and-a-half years ago, in a Blue State. But it's bigger than that. We did that in a Blue State, we took the money and put it into women's health, so we did exactly what we're talking about here. But I think the bigger issue here is we should be able to do this nationally, and this is precisely why so many Republicans are upset with Washington. They see the House and they see the Senate and they say why can't we pass this. Why can't we defund Planned — put it in a spending bill. Forget about the 60-vote rule, there's no reason — and the Constitution doesn't call for 60 votes. Pass it with 51 votes, put it on the desk of the president and go forward and actually make a point. This is why people are upset with Washington."^[3]

A Wisconsin Assembly committee approved a bill on September 9, 2015, that would ban the use of fetal tissue obtained after January 1, 2015, in research. A spokesman for Scott Walker said he was "uncommitted" to such a ban.^[4]

In an interview following the August 6, 2015, Republican debate on Fox News, Walker said instituting exceptions to abortion restrictions where the mother’s life was in danger represented “a false choice.” Walker explained, “There is always a better option out there. I've said for years, medically there's always a better choice than choosing between the life of an unborn baby and the life of the mother. Medically that's just a nonissue.”^[5]

On July 20, 2015, Walker signed into law a bill prohibiting non-emergency abortions after 20 weeks in Wisconsin. The law does not include exceptions for rape or incest.^[6]

In a March 3, 2015, open letter on abortion, Walker wrote, "Life is a value I learned from my parents, and it’s a value I have cherished every day, predating my time in politics. My policies throughout my career have earned a 100% rating with pro-life groups in Wisconsin. Just in my first term I signed numerous pieces of pro-life legislation and I will continue working for every life." Walker added that he would support both state and federal legislation prohibiting abortions after 20 weeks.^[7]

According to Wisconsin Right to Life, an anti-abortion advocacy group, Walker supported several initiatives to restrict abortion rights.^[8]^[9]

As an assembly representative, Walker "voted against taxpayer funding of abortions for public employers" and "voted to recognize an unborn child as a separate victim of a criminal act against the pregnant mother."^[9]

As governor, Walker signed legislation "allowing Wisconsin to opt-out of taxpayer-funded abortion coverage under ObamaCare" and "returning sex education curriculum to local control and allowing abstinence-only programs."^[9]

Walker also signed into law a bill that required "a woman view an ultrasound of her unborn child 24 hours before an abortion can take place."^[9]

While running for governor in 2010, Walker supported "allowing pharmacists to refuse to fill emergency contraception prescriptions on moral grounds," according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.^[10]

Recent news

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