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Joining me now are Republican Senators Ted Cruz of Texas and Katie Britt of Alabama. Thank you both for joining Bloomberg Television.
Here in New York.
You're out with a joint up ed this morning in the Wall Street Journal the title visit will protect both life and IVF. You're announcing a bill today through this legislation that would require as a condition your words of receiving federal medicaid funding that states don't prohibit IVF. Now, concerns about IVF stemmed really, Senator Britt, from your state of Alabama.
The Supreme Court came.
Out they said that these embryos in iff they are considered children under the Wrongful Death of a Minor Act. And then Alabama legislator moved past the bill that would protect IVF. So why is a national bill needed if the legislator just acted on behalf of basically telling the Supreme Court in Alabama that's wrong and this is not where the American people are.
Unfortunately, we've seen a number of people try to fear monger on this very issue, and so Ted and I came together and we believe this effort should be bipartisan to make sure that every parent across the country who wants to bring life into this world and maybe struggling with infertility or others, but wants to use IVF to create the miracle of life it bring it into the world, has a certainty that that's going to be available to them.
And so we're excited about it and believe that it's something we can move forward and move forward quickly.
Saat Gruzman.
Why wouldn't Republicans sign up for Senator Duckwertz bill earlier this year, which then actually would have protected what happened in Alabama.
Well, because that bill is a very different bill. That bill really seeks to backdoor in broader abortion legislation, which is where the Democrats are.
But that's not IVF.
Our bill is very simple, and it's very focused, and it is designed to protect IVF. IVF is miraculous medical technology. It enables millions of parents to have children, to be moms, to be dads of live bursts in America right now today come from IVF. It's incredible, and both Katie and I agree that IVF is incredibly pro family that we should be standing and helping parents who want to raise kids. And what happened when the Mama Supreme Court decision came out.
There was a lot of confusion, there was a lot of fear, There was a lot of misunderstanding, and people did not want anything to threaten IBF. I agree with that, Katie agrees with that, and so we came together and said, let's draft a simple, straightforward federal bill that creates a federal right that you, as a parent, have a right to have access to IVF. If you want to have a child and you need medical assistance to do so, that should be your right. This is a bill I
think that should be overwhelmingly bipartisan. The Senate should pass this bill one hundred to nothing. We'll see if they do or not, but on the merits, that's what should happen.
Center Duckworks bill though talked about, and it clearly asserts that this is about quote assisted reproductive technology and ensure ability to cover those procedures. So in that case, do you guys think Democrats you can get a bipartisan legislation, why not just work with Senator Duckworth.
Well, it depends the way the Duckworth Bill is written. It's very broad. There's a reason that no Republicans supported it because it was ostensibly about IVF. But whatever, it was written to give the federal government authority over abortion, potentially to strike down laws governing abortion and states all across the country. And that I get, that's the Democrats' agenda. And unfortunately, why.
Not have bipartisanship on both because overwhelmingly Americans if but overwhelmingly, and you come from states that have very restrictive abortion policies. Even majority of Republicans think abortions should be able to happen, rape.
Incessant life of the mother. That's not true of both your states.
Well, Listen, abortion is an issue that there are sharp disagreements. People of good faith and good morals disagree, and it's why the Supreme Court has said this is a question for the states, and every state decides it differently. If you look at our constitution, that's the way we decide really difficult issues of public policies. We leave it to the voters, and that reflects and respects democracy. IVF is very different. Nearly ninety percent of Americans believe IVF should
be protected. So what we're trying to say is look, let's find an area of common ground. We're not going to find complete agreement among all one hundred senators on abortion, We're just not. People have different views. That's the beauty of a democracy that we can have different views. But on IVF, we ought to be able to unify everybody. We ought to be able to get Republicans and Democrats together and say this technology enabling people to be parents
is wonderful technology and it is pro family. So there are issues on which we disagree, but this is one where we can find common ground.
I very much hope and I hope so too.
I mean, we actually wrote this in that way so that it would be very measured and simple and to the point, protecting IVF, protecting family's ability to bring life into this world. And we both have talked to a number of friends and family me and others constituents that tell us their story about being able to bring a child into this world through IVF and so making sure that we protect that in a way that protects religious freedom and liberty and families and others, I think is
critically important. And that's what we've done here, and we hope to gain some momentum on it.
I guess some of the concerns from some hard right members of your party would be is an IVF embryo considered life at conception?
Well, look, I.
Can tell you that there is unanimity. I believe all one hundred Senators support IVF. I don't know a single Senator that does not. I don't know a single Republican that does not. I don't know a single Democrat that does not. We ought to be able to find real agreement on a question like IVF, you know, you talk about as Katie mentioned, she and I both have dear friends who had their children through IVF and their wonderful parents.
They love their their daughters, their sons. That's an amazing thing, you know. You look at since the development of IVF, there have been over eight million babies born through IVF. That is a fantastic thing, and so many families have been brought joy. That we ought to be able to find agreement, and I think we will. I hope we will.
But in the discussion of IVF, abortion comes up, and majority of Americans are on the side of that least abortion should be allowed, especially in certain cases of rape, incest, life.
Of the mother.
So with that in mind going into this election season, how do you think about abortion, because that for Democrats is going to be one of the main rallying cries to get voters out as well as tapping funding.
I think it also should be for Republicans.
I mean, Henry, when you say that, I think the majority of Americans also believe you should not be able to take the life of a child the moment before the child is born. Should there be a federal plan that we saw We saw Democrats vote just the last Congress.
To be able to do that.
I mean, when you talk to people and you talk about a child and a woman's womb at thirty nine weeks and actually aborting that baby, the majority of Americans to agree that shouldn't be able to happen on American soil. So the problem is the Democrats are trying to deflect by how extreme they are in this position, and I think we're going to keep coming back to it, and I think where Americans are.
But if you say the Democrats are extreme in that position, and you want to have this IVF bill, and you think Duckworth potentially was too far on the margins coming into abortion, then would you be open to a bipartisanship bill when it comes to things like rape incess life of the mother.
So what I would say is today's Democrat position in the Senate is incredibly extreme. What Katie just told you, every single Democrat in the Senate supports unlimited abortion, partial birth abortion literally. But it is so hennery. It actually is true because they all voted for it. That we had a bill lest Congress that would strike down every limitation in the country and that would legalize abortion literally until the moment of birth. That is such an extreme position.
Nine percent of American CDC.
Data though there are not abortions in America.
But every Democrat supports Actually, there are late term abortions, and every single Democrat.
Voted extreme circumstances.
Every single Democrats supported it, and ninety one percent of Americans disagree with that. The vast majority of people who consider themselves pro choice, say, listen, late term abortion, abortion in the thirty ninth or fortieth week. That that is barbaric. And that's the position of every single Democrat, which is why they don't want to talk about their position. What they want to do instead is scaremonger and IVF. They want to suggest those mean, Republicans want to take away IVF. Well,
let's let's have an area of complete agreement. Let's make clear IVF is fully protected by federal law.
And I think Democrats agree with you on there, and I.
Will will back on this.
So all of them want we will abortion till.
But that is how they voted. I mean, at the end of the day, what you vote for matters.
And they did vote that way. And that's the thing.
I just had the Secretary of HHS in front of US at and Appropriations hearing and I ask him about this administration not putting the heighth Amendment in their budget requests, something that's been bipartisan for years, and moving that forward. And then I had actually talked to a woman who performed one of these aborde at thirty nine weeks right before walking into there.
She told me.
About how barbaric that is about delivering the baby breach, about putting a knife up that baby's spine, opening it up, pulling out the brains, collapsing the skull, pushing that baby out. So it actually does happen, and unfortunately every Democrat voted to continue to allow that to happen. And the thing is, we have a duty to continue.
To talk about that.
We're one of eight countries on the entire planet that allows for that.
So are you both calling for national ban?
Well, there is an existing law that ban's federal partial birth abortion. It's the Democrats that are calling for changing the federal law to legalize partial birth abortion. They voted for striking down every restriction. But understand here, listen, we're not going to this morning resolve all the disagreements on abortion. People have very strong, good faith views from places of deep emotion and personal experience. That's part of the beauty
of democracy. That that's part of the genius of the framers, as they recognize when there's the questions we have disagreements about, let the voters decide. And you would expect the state of New York to have a different resolution than the state of Texas or the state of Alabama. And we've got fifty states. But what we can do is say, are there issues where we have agreement, and IVF is
one of them. This bill is designed to protect something that is incredibly important, to give comfort to parents who and to those who desperately want to be parents who are scared and they're picking up the newspapers or watching on TV politicians saying someone's going to take away IVF. Well, this bill will make clear it will be enshrined in federal law. You have a right to access to this technology.
It's also very political going to election, and actually one of your staffers said that to the Washington Examiner. And as we head into the election center, Bert, I have to ask you. Since you're with us, your name continuously be floated as this potential VP pick for former President Donald Trump. What is the current dialogue between you and the Trump campaign.
Look, I am working diligently on behalf of the people of Alabama in the United States Senate. We have a lot of work to do there, and I'm eager to continue that work and I'm proud to be a part of it.
There's no doubt that.
The American people want Donald Trump back in the White House. I mean we are seeing that at every single poll because people want a secure border, they want safe streets, they want stable prices, and then that's what he's going to bring to the White House. So I'm going to continue to work diligently alongside Ted to bring common sense solutions to the problems facing our country.
And certainly honored to be able to do that. But if he calls you accept listen.
I am sure he has a long list, many of which are our colleagues, and we're rooting for them for sure. Bottom line is, we're going to all do everything that we can to get Donald Trump back in the White House and also take back the Senate because the fate of our nation is at stake and we believe that that's worth fighting for.
Republican Senator Ted Cruz, Senator Katie Britt of Alabama, thank you so much for both of you for joining us.