Whitmer says ‘no common ground’ with Republican-controlled Michigan legislature on abortion

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) said on Sunday that it is a “scary moment” for women as Republicans in her state push to ban abortion after Friday’s Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade.

“What I’m trying to fight for is the status quo in Michigan, and there are reasonable restrictions on that,” Whitmer told CBS “Face the Nation” moderator Margaret Brennan. “With the current legislature that I have, there is no common ground, which is the sad thing.” 

But later in the interview, Whitmer did say some “compromise was possible” as she referred to Republican efforts as a “radical agenda.”

A 1931 Michigan law had banned abortion with no exceptions for rape or incest, but the Roe decision decades later made the law unconstitutional.

As the Supreme Court weighed a challenge to Roe in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, eventually overturning the landmark case on Friday, a judge last month granted a preliminary injunction temporarily blocking the decades-old Michigan law.

Abortion remains legal in Michigan as long as the injunction remains in place, and Whitmer on Friday filed a motion asking the Michigan Supreme Court to recognize a right to abortion under the state’s constitution.

Meanwhile, the GOP-controlled Michigan legislature asked a court earlier this month to reconsider its decision granting a preliminary injunction, the Detroit Free Press reported.

“They’ve all endorsed the 1931 law, as [have] all of the Republican people running for governor,” Whitmer told Brennan on Sunday. “They want abortion to be a felony, no exceptions for rape or incest. That’s the kind of legislature that I’m working with. That’s the kind of matchup I’m going to have this fall.”

Whitmer is up for reelection in November, and multiple Republicans will face off in an August primary in their bid to challenge her.

“We’re pulling out all the stops,” Whitmer said. “This is a fight like hell moment.”