Ted Cruz Has Suddenly Gotten Quiet on Abortion
Plus: Republican lawmakers are frantic after Trump’s debate.
For the entirety of his Senate career, Ted Cruz has been a warrior for the pro-life/anti-abortion movement. Banning abortion has been a major political priority for him. But now that Roe v. Wade has been overturned and some states are instituting abortion bans, Cruz—christened “The Absolutist” in a New Yorker profile ten years ago—is approaching the issue quite differently.
When Cruz first ran for Senate in 2012, he opposed abortion in all cases except those where the life of the mother was at risk. He maintained this stance as his profile grew following his election. “When it comes to rape, rape is a horrific crime against the humanity of a person, and needs to be punished and punished severely,” Cruz said during a 2016 Wisconsin event while running for president. “But at the same time, as horrible as that crime is, I don’t believe it’s the child’s fault. And we weep at the crime, we want to do everything we can to prevent the crime on the front end, and to punish the criminal, but I don’t believe it makes sense to blame the child.”
The Supreme Court fulfilled a major wish of Cruz and other anti-abortion politicians when it overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.
Since Dobbs v. Jackson was handed down, states like Texas have begun implementing sweeping abortion bans. These have become something of a political liability for Republicans—so much of a liability that even Cruz, “the absolutist,” has decided to push the issue to the backseat of his policy agenda, if not avoid it entirely.
Join Bulwark+ to unlock the rest
Become a paying member of The Bulwark to get access to this post and other subscriber-only content. A subscription gets you:
- Unlimited access to articles and newsletters including The Triad by JVL and Receipts by Catherine Rampell.
- Ad-free editions of our shows (with transcripts) and member-only shows like The Secret Podcast.
- Plus community chats and commenting features. Your support helps keep our work sustainable and available to those who cannot afford a membership. Cancel anytime.