‘It’s insulting to the women of America’: Donald Trump’s abortion lies finally called out on debate stage

In a fever dream of a presidential debate on Tuesday night, former President Donald Trump’s curious insistence on hammering home violent absurdities about abortion met its match in Vice President Kamala Harris.

Harris, who showed consistency and clarity in her messaging throughout, and ABC moderator Linsey Davis met Trump’s deceitful claims about late-term abortions with data. It was a clear departure from the unwieldy June 27 debate with President Joe Biden—where Trump’s nonsense (and any incorrect statements for that matter) frequently went unchecked by CNN’s moderators Jake Tapper and Dana Bash.

In this particular exchange with Harris, when Trump dodged a direct question—as was the norm—on whether he would veto a national abortion ban, he proceeded to veer off the road in a hurry. In his characteristic reckless manner, he falsely claimed that Democrats, including Tim Walz, supported “abortion in the ninth month” and even “execution after birth.”

“Her vice presidential pick, which I think was a horrible pick for our country, because he is really adamant, but her vice presidential pick says that abortion in the ninth month is absolutely fine,” Trump said. “He also says, ‘execution after birth’—execution, no longer abortion because the baby is born—is okay. And that’s not okay with me. Hence the vote.” Of course, these assertions, which Trump has repeatedly made on the campaign trail, have no basis in fact.

Disappointed that Trump would keep repeating these lies that could be debunked with a simple Google search, Harris swiftly countered the statements, “Nowhere in America is a woman carrying a pregnancy to term and asking for an abortion. That isn’t happening; it’s insulting to the women of America.” Her forceful rebuttal highlighted the absurdity of Trump’s claims; her contrast, especially in tone, put her in the driver’s seat from this point forward. Whereas he seemed stronger against a shaky Biden, the Harris’s incisiveness made Trump look like a Neanderthal.

Moderator Linsey Davis followed up with a critical fact-check, notifying Trump directly, “There is no state in the country where it’s legal to kill a baby after it’s born.” The beat of journalistic intervention was particularly notable, as it addressed the type of fiction that has frequently gone unchallenged in public appearances, especially the previous debate with Biden.

Trump’s unhinged rhetoric on most subjects, but especially abortion, has been a significant source of controversy. Medical professionals, fact-checkers, and available data have constantly disproved his ridiculous claims. Abortions after 21 weeks are extremely sporadic and are almost always situation-specific—accounting for about 1% of all abortions in the United States, per CDC data. These procedures are typically performed at the onset of severe fetal abnormalities or during situations of direct threat to the mother’s life.

Harris then used her time to highlight Trump’s central role in the present landscape of abortion rights, including reminding viewers that Trump himself had appointed three of the Supreme Court justices who controversially voted to overturn Roe v. Wade—leading to a swell of state-level bans and restrictions that quickly proved immediately detrimental to women’s bodily autonomy. With public opinion polling and several state-level pro-choice initiatives in place, consistently showing that most Americans support legal abortion access, at least in some circumstances, Harris exhibited the deep divide on a critical topic for which Trump could not state a remotely coherent case.

Tuesday’s debate was an unambiguous win for Harris. As she brought home points on a significant matter for voters, it also brought a tightened scrutiny to Trump’s apparent predisposition for spreading blatant misinformation and fantastic conspiracy theories in public forums. More importantly, perhaps, is the clear declination of Harris and the moderators in tolerating his lies, which would have typically sucked up mental and emotional space for viewers. Whether it clears with so-called “swing” or “undecided” voters is another matter altogether.