Colorado Gov. Polis says abortion requires 'gut-wrenching decisions,' defends late-term procedures

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Colorado preserves Roe v. Wade protection: Gov. Jared Polis

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis discusses his state’s abortion rights and U.S. inflation.

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis defended a woman’s right to an abortion, calling it a "gut-wrenching" decision that people should trust women to make. 

"I think there's a lot of common ground around reducing unwanted pregnancies by empowering women and men to birth control and really generating a culture of responsibility about what it means to be a parent," Polis, a Democrat, said during an appearance on "Fox News Sunday." 

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The leak of a draft Supreme Court opinion indicated justices stand poised to overturn decades of precedent recognizing abortion access as part of the constitutional right to privacy. Protests broke out nationwide to push back against states imposing restrictions on abortion.

Colorado last month preserved a woman’s "fundamental right" to an abortion, contraception and other forms of reproductive health care rights. 

"People face gut-wrenching decisions every day, whether it's rape or incest, often even having to choose between the life of the mother and child," Polis told FNS host Shannon Bream. 

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Polis added that it was "simply wrong" for the government to insert itself in conversations that he said should happen between women and either their doctors or faith leaders. 

Colorado will also not seek to ban third trimester abortions after voters "overwhelmingly" rejected the measure on a ballot put forward a year and a half ago, Polis said.

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"You might be near birth, and you find out that your kid doesn’t have lungs and won’t live for more than a few minutes outside of the womb," Polis explained. "This is a really difficult thing that women face.

"The right answer is, of course, to make sure that we trust people to make that decision, and people have the freedom to do that. We don't say big government is going to insert itself and tell them how to handle something."

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Polis also weighed in on protests outside the homes of the five Supreme Court justices that sided with the potential majority opinion to leave abortion rights decisions to the states, saying he doesn’t think they are "particularly effective in persuading judges." 

"[The protests] might further alienate them from a particular cause to be that aggressive," Polis said, adding he believed the justices to be "the embodiment of our highest and best judges" who are "very thoughtful."