CNN "Anderson Cooper 360" - Transcript: Interview with Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand
Interview
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[20:37:50] ANDERSON: Back to our breaking news. Tonight, Alabama's governor signed into law the most restrictive abortion bill in the country and near total ban on all abortions in the state. Under the new law, doctors who perform abortions could face up to 99 years in prison.
The reaction from Democratic presidential candidates has been swift and fierce. One of the most vocal opponents is New York senator and 2020 presidential candidate, Kirsten Gillibrand, who tweeted that abortion ban recently passed in Alabama and Georgia represent "the greatest threat to reproductive freedom in our lifetimes."
Senator Gillibrand is heading to Georgia tomorrow. But, first, she joins us here on "360." Senator, thanks for being with us.
SEN. KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND (D-NY) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Hi, Anderson.
COOPER: You want to fight this, but what exactly can you do on the congressional level? I mean, this is solely a decision for the courts at this point, isn't it?
GILLIBRAND: I think I can lead a movement and a fight across this nation for women's reproductive freedom. This is an all out assault, state after state, over 39 efforts in this country to undermine women's reproductive freedoms.
President Trump intends on overturning Roe v. Wade, he made it clear not only in his campaign but as president. And that's what these Republican legislatures are doing across this country. This is something women are going to have to fight back on and I will lead that fight.
COOPER: Justice Kavanaugh during his confirmation hearing, he said that he would respect the "important precedent of Roe v Wade." Do you believe he'll do that if and when this case and cases from other states make their way to the Supreme Court? Because that -- I mean, a lot of times people who are waiting to get confirmed give a statement that's kind of oblique and could be read in different ways.
GILLIBRAND: I think his statement was dishonest and disingenuous, but the American people are watching. And if he lied under oath in those hearings, that's going to be problematic. So, I hope the American people and American women everywhere will hold this President accountable and will protest these extreme decisions by legislatures and governors being signed into law.
They're criminalizing a woman's right to make a decision about her body, her reproductive freedom, how many children she'll have, when she will have children. And it is literally turning back the clock on settled law.
[20:40:04] This is not something the American people support. Over 70 percent of American people support reproductive freedom and support the precedent of Roe v. Wade.
COOPER: The fact of the matter, as you said, is that this is not any surprise. President Trump made it very clear as a candidate, he wanted to overturn this. He won the presidency in part because his supporters wanted him to appoint conservative justices to the Supreme Court, potentially appealing Roe v. Wade if it came down to it. So, I mean, couldn't one argue that this is the will of the people at least to a certain degree?
GILLIBRAND: Well, Hillary Clinton won the popular vote by 3 million votes, so I wouldn't say that. And if you ask Americans today, do you believe in the precedent of Roe v. Wade and giving women basic human rights and civil rights to make decisions about their health, their well-being, their bodies, and life or death medical decisions, they believe women should have that right.
So, we know where the American people stand on this. And that's why we have to lift up the voices of people in Georgia, people in Alabama, women who will suffer under these new laws and make sure that their voices are heard and I will lead this fight across the country.
If I'm president, I will make sure that there is not a judge or justice who is appointed by me who will not uphold the precedent of Roe v. Wade. And the truth is, I will guarantee that no matter where you live in this country, in all 50 states, that a woman will have access to safe, legal abortions and other reproductive care services that Republican legislators are so intent on denying.
COOPER: So you would want a litmus test for Supreme Court justices and Roe v. Wade would be one of those litmus tests?
GILLIBRAND: I do. And I do because President Trump and Senator McConnell have changed all the rules when it comes to appointing justices. When Mitch McConnell decided that President Obama was not entitled to his Supreme Court justice, where Merrick Garland was denied a hearing and a vote, they changed the rules.
President Trump has made clear he's had a litmus test. And frankly, I believe in precedent, settled law. And this is not just some regulatory issue. This is a basic fundamental human right of every female in this country and you are telling them that men in legislatures across America should get to decide when they have children, how many they have, and what types of health care they may have access to.
We are rolling back the clock decades. And if they were doing this on any other issue, you would see a ground swell of outrage. And I'm telling you, women have been marching against this President since he was inaugurated, global women's marches for years now.
You saw women turned up to the polls in 2018, flipping the House of Representatives because bold women ran across this country on issues of passion and issues of rights. And so this is just beginning, Anderson. And if the President wants a fight with the American people and the American women, he's got it.
COOPER: Senator Gillibrand, appreciate your time.
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