GOP Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves Won’t Rule Out Possible Contraception Ban

Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves (R) made appearances on CNN’s State of the Union and NBC’s Meet the Press to defend his stance on abortion following last week’s leaked Supreme Court opinion draft indicating an early vote that would overturn the 1973’s landmark Roe v. Wade.

If Roe v. Wade is overturned in the final opinion later this summer, a 2007 trigger law will go into effect in Mississippi. The law bans abortion but does allow for exceptions in cases of rape and medical emergencies. Incest was not mentioned in the law, but Reeves said that adding that exception is a conversation that he is willing to have.

Reeves was pressed by interviewers about banning contraception, and whether the law would apply to women who use birth control. He said Mississippi is not focused on that right now.

WATCH: Gov. Tate Reeves (R-Miss.) does not say whether he would sign legislation banning contraceptives if introduced in his state. #MTP #IfitsSunday@tatereeves: “I don’t think that's going to happen in Mississippi.”@chucktodd: “But you're not answering the question.” pic.twitter.com/voi8zBRAFZ

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— Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) May 8, 2022

Later, he clarified his comments.

“I got asked on CNN and NBC this morning if we would ban contraceptives,” he wrote on Twitter. “I was pretty surprised because that’s never been a conversation here.”

“I even explicitly said that the next consideration in our mind—if Roe is overturned—has nothing to do with further restrictions,” he added. “It’s all helping support mothers and babies by investing in prenatal care, foster care, and adoption.”

I like Chuck and Jake. And I like answering tough questions about controversial issues. I think that’s what we owe as leaders. But I feel like this could use some clarification and thoughts on how the news cycle works. Cause I’m not interested in banning contraceptives. https://t.co/VvlRHcKF80

— Tate Reeves (@tatereeves) May 8, 2022