Trump says Arizona Supreme Court ruling on abortion went too far

Former president Donald Trump said Wednesday that the Arizona Supreme Court went too far in recently ruling in favor of a near total-abortion ban, and later said he would not sign a federal bill banning the procedure.

When asked by a reporter on an Atlanta airport tarmac about the ruling, Trump agreed Arizona had gone too far and said “that will be straightened out.”

Trump’s statement highlights the delicate balance he is trying to strike on a politically radioactive issue for Republicans. Even as Trump suggested Arizona would change course Wednesday, his campaign doubled down Tuesday on his previous comments, saying, “These are decisions for people of each state to make.”

The Arizona Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled in favor of invoking an 1864 law that forbids abortions except to save a mother’s life and punishes providers with prison time. It supersedes Arizona’s previous law that permitted abortions up to 15 weeks.

[‘Catastrophic,’ ‘a shock’: Arizona abortion ruling threatens to upend 2024 races]

On Monday, Trump issued a video statement in which he said it should be up to the states to decide their abortion policy. That comment drew backlash from Democrats, who said Trump was endorsing state abortion bans, as well as from groups like Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, who said “unborn children and their mothers deserve national protections and national advocacy from the brutality of the abortion industry.” In his statement, Trump took credit for overturning Roe v. Wade, which provided for a legal right to abortion.

As president, Trump backed a 20-week abortion ban.