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| Kamala Harris Calls for Attention on Reproductive Rights at Debate | Kamala Harris Calls for Attention on Reproductive Rights at Debate |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Senator Kamala Harris of California made an impassioned plea on Tuesday for her fellow presidential candidates to focus on women’s access to reproductive health care, generating applause. | |
| “This is the sixth debate we have had in this presidential cycle,” she said at the night’s debate in Ohio. “And not nearly one word, with all of these discussions about health care, on women’s access to reproductive health care, which is under full-on attack in America today. And it’s outrageous.” | |
| Entering the debate, Ms. Harris was polling within the bottom rung of Democratic candidates in national surveys. Many supporters and donors were hoping that she would recapture the magic of June’s debate, when she flattened former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. over his opposition to school busing in the 1970s and opened up about her own story. | Entering the debate, Ms. Harris was polling within the bottom rung of Democratic candidates in national surveys. Many supporters and donors were hoping that she would recapture the magic of June’s debate, when she flattened former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. over his opposition to school busing in the 1970s and opened up about her own story. |
| Though these words did not generate that kind of response, it was evidently a strong moment for Ms. Harris early in the debate. | Though these words did not generate that kind of response, it was evidently a strong moment for Ms. Harris early in the debate. |
| “It’s not an exaggeration to say women will die because these Republican legislatures in these various states who are out of touch with America are telling women what to do with their bodies,” she said. | “It’s not an exaggeration to say women will die because these Republican legislatures in these various states who are out of touch with America are telling women what to do with their bodies,” she said. |
| Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey responded by adding that it was also the job of men to fight for women’s reproductive rights. | Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey responded by adding that it was also the job of men to fight for women’s reproductive rights. |
| “God bless Kamala,” he said. “But you know what? Women should not be the only ones taking up this cause and this fight. It’s not just because women are our daughters and our friends and our wives. It’s because women are people.” | “God bless Kamala,” he said. “But you know what? Women should not be the only ones taking up this cause and this fight. It’s not just because women are our daughters and our friends and our wives. It’s because women are people.” |
| Later in the debate, the topic of reproductive rights emerged again when Ms. Harris was asked what she would do if states prevailed in further restricting abortion. Over the past year, Ohio, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri and Mississippi have passed bills that effectively prohibit abortions after six to eight weeks of pregnancy. | |
| She said the Department of Justice would review such a law to determine if it was compliant with Roe v. Wade and the Constitution. “If it is not, that law will not go into effect,” she said. | |
| She also called for women to be allowed to make such choices for themselves. | |
| “Women have been given the responsibility to perpetuate the human species,” she said. “Our bodies were created to do that, and it does not give any other person the right to tell a woman what to do with that body. It is her body. It is her right. It is her decision.” |