Harris accuses Texas Gov. Abbott of ‘arrogantly’ dismissing rape victims

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Vice President Kamala Harris opened up a speech supporting California Gov. Gavin Newsom against a recall effort by slamming Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and his state’s newly enacted law restricting abortions.

“Just one thing about Texas, so when I was leaving this morning I was watching the morning news…and they had this clip of the governor of Texas and the words that he spoke were words that arrogantly dismiss concerns about rape survivors,” Harris said near the start of her Wednesday speech. “And to speak those words that were empty words, that were false words, that were fueled with not only arrogance but with bravado, that is not who we want in our leaders.”

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Harris was referring to a comment from Abbott the previous day that was widely criticized by Democrats where he defended the controversial abortion law which prohibits abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, the time at which a fetal heartbeat can usually be detected, and downplayed concerns that rape victims would be forced to carry a child to full term.

“It doesn’t require that at all, because obviously it provides at least 6 weeks for a person to be able to get an abortion,” Abbott said when asked if rape victims will be required to give birth and added that his plan is to “eliminate” rapists from the streets of Texas.

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Several prominent Democrats have pushed back against the comment, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who said the governor was speaking from a place of “deep ignorance.”

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Abbott’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News.

Earlier this month, the Supreme Court upheld the Texas law by denying an emergency appeal from abortion providers and others that sought to block enforcement of the law, which recently went into effect. But the justices also suggested that their order likely isn’t the last word on whether the law can stand because other challenges to it can still be brought.

Associated Press contributed to this report