(CNN) — Virginia Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam is facing backlash after he voiced his support for a state measure that would significantly loosen restrictions on late-term abortions. “[Third trimester abortions are] done in cases where there may be severe deformities. There may be a fetus that’s nonviable. So in this particular example, if a mother is in labor, I can tell you exactly what would happen,” Northam, a pediatric neurosurgeon, told Washington radio station WTOP. “The infant would be delivered. The infant would be kept comfortable. The infant would be resuscitated if that’s what the mother and the family desired. And then a discussion would ensue between the physicians and the mother.” The bill – which among other things would end a state rule that requires at least three physicians confirm “that a third trimester abortion is necessary to prevent the woman’s death or impairment of her mental or physical health” and ends “the need to find that any such impairment to the woman’s health would be substantial and irremediable” – is currently tabled in Virginia’s legislature. Northam said he supports the bill’s measures, telling WTOP that “we want the government not to be involved in these types of decisions. We want the decision to be made by the mothers and their providers.” Shortly after Northam’s interview, several prominent Republican leaders sharply criticized the governor’s comments, accusing him of being in favor of infanticide. “This is horrific,” Republican National Committee chairwoman Ronna McDaniel wrote on Twitter, adding that Northam “is defending born-alive abortions.” This is horrific. Dem Gov. Ralph Northam, a pediatrician himself, is defending born-alive abortions: “The infant would be delivered. The infant would be kept comfortable. The infant would be resuscitated if that’s what the mother and the family desired.”pic.twitter.com/3AxXlBhImQ — Ronna McDaniel (@GOPChairwoman) January 30, 2019 Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Florida, also took to Twitter to address Northam’s comments, writing that he “never thought I would see the day America had government officials who openly support legal infanticide.” Later Wednesday, President Donald Trump weighed in on Northam’s comments in an interview with The Daily Caller when asked for comment by a reporter, though he said he hadn’t heard the remarks himself. “I’m surprised that he did that. I’ve met him a number of times,” Trump said of the governor’s comments. “This is going to lift up the whole pro-life movement like maybe it’s never been lifted up before,” he told the outlet. “The pro-life movement is very much a 50-50, it’s a very 50-50 issue, actually it’s gained a point or two over the years.” “I think this will very much lift up the issue because people have never thought of it in those terms,” Trump added. Northam’s office said in a statement on Wednesday that his comments were taken out of context and that Republicans “are trying to play politics with women’s health.” “No woman seeks a third trimester abortion except in the case of tragic or difficult circumstances, such as a nonviable pregnancy or in the event of severe fetal abnormalities, and the governor’s comments were limited to the actions physicians would take in the event that a woman in those circumstances went into labor,” Ofirah Yheskel, Northam’s spokesperson, wrote in the statement. “Attempts to extrapolate these comments otherwise is in bad faith and underscores exactly why the governor believes physicians and women, not legislators, should make these difficult and deeply personal medical decisions,” Yheskel said in the statement. In a tweet posted later Wednesday, Northam wrote, “I have devoted my life to caring for children and any insinuation otherwise is shameful and disgusting.” CNN’s Ryan Nobles contributed to this report.<doc-sep>PALM BEACH, Fla. — President Donald Trump weighed in on the controversy over Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam and a racist photo by linking the image to abortion and electoral politics as well as bigotry. Democratic officials in Virginia and nationally urged Northam to resign after news reports of the photo, which appeared in Northam’s 1984 medical school yearbook and showed a person in blackface and a person in Klan regalia. Northam refused to resign, however, and said Saturday that he was not either of the people pictured. In tweets Saturday night, Trump criticized Northam over his recent comments on late-term abortion. He also said that Northam’s Republican opponent in the 2017 gubernatorial election, Ed Gillespie, would have won had the photo turned up during their campaign. Earlier this week, abortion opponents accused Northam of supporting infanticide. In a radio interview, the governor described a hypothetical situation in which an infant who is severely deformed or unable to survive after birth is left to die. Trump tweeted after those comments that “Democrats are becoming the Party of late term abortion.” As calls mounted Saturday for Northam to resign because of the photo, Trump tweeted: “Democrat Governor Ralph Northam of Virginia just stated, ‘I believe that I am not either of the people in that photo.’ This was 24 hours after apologizing for appearing in the picture and after making the most horrible statement on ‘super’ late term abortion. Unforgivable!” In a second tweet, Trump wrote: “Ed Gillespie, who ran for Governor of the Great State of Virginia against Ralph Northam, must now be thinking Malpractice and Dereliction of Duty with regard to his Opposition Research Staff. If they find that terrible picture before the election, he wins by 20 points!” Sign up for Daily Newsletters Manage Newsletters Copyright © 2021 The Washington Times, LLC.<doc-sep>Northam — a pediatric neurologist — was discussing a bill that would loosen restrictions on third-trimester abortions. The bill was tabled in the Virginia House of Delegates this week. WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump and other prominent Republicans are attacking Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam for comments he made on WTOP’s “Ask The Governor” program Wednesday. Northam — a pediatric neurologist — was discussing a bill that would loosen restrictions on third-trimester abortions. The bill was tabled in the Virginia House of Delegates this week. The controversy actually started on Tuesday when a video of Fairfax County Delegate Kathy Tran, the bill’s sponsor, circulated online. In the video, Tran acknowledges that her bill would allow women to seek abortions at any point in her pregnancy — including late into their third trimester– if their physical or mental health were at risk. The policy of permitting final trimester abortions when the mother’s life and/or physical or mental safety is at risk is already legal in Virginia. Still, reaction was swift. Several GOP figures and conservative groups voiced their outrage, prompting WTOP to raise the question to Northam during Wednesday’s “Ask The Governor” segment. NBC 4’s Julie Carey asked the governor whether he supported Tran’s measure, which she said would provide women with the right terminate their pregnancy even as they are in the early stages of giving birth. toggle audio on and off change volume download audio Gov. Northam discusses late-term abortion on WTOP's Ask The Governor Northam responded by saying Tran’s comments were “blown out of proportion.” He pointed out that third-trimester abortions are rare, performed only in cases where there are severe fetal abnormalities — or a nonviable pregnancy. He went on to say that, on the rare occasion that a woman did want to terminate her pregnancy while she was in labor, the infant would be delivered and kept comfortable. Several conservative leaders, including Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida and Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel, interpreted the governor’s words as defending infanticide. I never thought I would see the day America had government officials who openly support legal infanticide. https://t.co/VzM4FPO7QT — Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) January 30, 2019 This is horrific. Dem Gov. Ralph Northam, a pediatrician himself, is defending born-alive abortions: “The infant would be delivered. The infant would be kept comfortable. The infant would be resuscitated if that’s what the mother and the family desired.”pic.twitter.com/3AxXlBhImQ — Ronna McDaniel (@GOPChairwoman) January 30, 2019 In an exclusive interview with The Daily Caller, President Trump said he was “surprised” at Northam, but admitted he had not heard the governor’s exact remarks. He did, however, watch the video of Tran supporting the bill and called it “terrible.” “No woman seeks a third-trimester abortion except in the case of tragic or difficult circumstances,” said a spokesperson for Northam. “Attempts to extrapolate these comments otherwise are in bad faith.”<doc-sep>
President Donald Trump called out Democratic Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam for his recent apology over a racist photo appearing in his 1984 medical school yearbook and comments on late-term abortions. “Democrat Governor Ralph Northam of Virginia just stated, ‘I believe that I am not either of the people in that photo,'” Trump tweeted Saturday. “This was 24 hours after apologizing for appearing in the picture and after making the most horrible statement on ‘super’ late term abortion. Unforgivable!” Democrat Governor Ralph Northam of Virginia just stated, “I believe that I am not either of the people in that photo.” This was 24 hours after apologizing for appearing in the picture and after making the most horrible statement on “super” late term abortion. Unforgivable! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 3, 2019 Trump suggested in a separate tweet that if Northam’s picture appeared prior to the 2017 gubernatorial election, opponent Ed Gillespie, a Republican, could have had an advantage. “Ed Gillespie, who ran for Governor of the Great State of Virginia against Ralph Northam, must now be thinking Malpractice and Dereliction of Duty with regard to his Opposition Research Staff,” Trump tweeted. “If they find that terrible picture before the election, he wins by 20 points!” Ed Gillespie, who ran for Governor of the Great State of Virginia against Ralph Northam, must now be thinking Malpractice and Dereliction of Duty with regard to his Opposition Research Staff. If they find that terrible picture before the election, he wins by 20 points! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 3, 2019 Northam apologized Friday for a picture showing one person wearing blackface and another in a Ku Klux Klan costume under his section of the yearbook. He denied in a Saturday press conference, however, of being in the picture. (RELATED: Big Name Democrats Call On Northam To Resign Following Racist Yearbook Photo Controversy) The Virginia governor made comments on late-term abortion in a Wednesday interview with WTOP. Northam’s statements were regarding Virginia’s HB 2491, which would allow abortions late into the third term in certain cases. “If a mother is in labor, I can tell you exactly what would happen,” Northam said in the interview. “The infant would be delivered. The infant would be kept comfortable. The infant would be resuscitated if that’s what the mother and the family desired, and then a discussion would ensue between the physicians and the mother.” Northam defeated Gillespie in November 2017. Northam had 53.6 percent of the vote while Gillespie had 45.2 percent. Follow Neetu on Twitter Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.