SCOTUS should rule against FDA on authorization of abortion drug, Ramaswamy says

CNN town hall with Vivek Ramaswamy in Iowa

By Tori B. Powell, Elise Hammond and Maureen Chowdhury, CNN

Updated 11:44 p.m. ET, December 13, 2023
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10:07 p.m. ET, December 13, 2023

SCOTUS should rule against FDA on authorization of abortion drug, Ramaswamy says

Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy participates in a CNN Republican Town Hall moderated by CNN’s Abby Phillip at Grand View University in Des Moines, Iowa, on Wednesday, December 13.
Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy participates in a CNN Republican Town Hall moderated by CNN’s Abby Phillip at Grand View University in Des Moines, Iowa, on Wednesday, December 13. Will Lanzoni/CNN

Asked if he believes the Supreme Court should limit the distribution of a widely used abortion drug — even in states where the procedure is still allowed — Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy said he agrees the court should rule on the power of the Food and Drug Administration.

The Supreme Court said Wednesday it will consider a case that concerns restricting access to the drug mifepristone. When coupled with another drug, it is one of the most common abortion methods in the United States.

The Biden administration and a manufacturer of the drug are asking the justices to reverse a federal appeals court decision that, if allowed to go into effect, would restrict access to the drug. At the same time, groups and doctors that oppose abortion want the justices to go even further than a conservative federal appeals court did and hold that the initial 2000 approval of the drug was also unlawful.

“This is a case about administrative law. This is less about the abortion question and it's more about, did the FDA exceed the scope of its statutory authority when it approved mifepristone on the emergency basis?” Ramaswamy said.

Pressed by CNN’s Abby Phillip on if the court should ban mifepristone, Ramaswamy said it should “put the FDA back in its place” and the Supreme Court should rule on the law that approved the drug in the first place.

Asked to clarify if that meant the drug would be banned nationwide as a result, Ramaswamy said, “I believe it will result in mifepristone being taken off the market until they go through the process that’s ordained for every other drug that doesn’t go through emergency approval.”

Some context: Mifepristone was initially approved by the FDA in 2000, but in 2016, 2019 and 2021, the FDA put in place modifications that would make the drug more easily accessible. Those modifications were related to issues such as dosing and in-person dispensing requirements. The changes also allowed the drug to be taken later in pregnancy.

Challengers – including doctors and groups who oppose abortion — argue that the FDA did not do enough to study the safety implications of the drug when it approved its use and made it more easily accessible in subsequent years.

9:54 p.m. ET, December 13, 2023

Ramaswamy repeats conspiracy theories about Jan. 6 when pressed about falsehoods by CNN's Abby Phillip

CNN’s Abby Phillip pushes back on an answer from Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy during a CNN Republican Town Hall at Grand View University in Des Moines, Iowa, on Wednesday, December 13.
CNN’s Abby Phillip pushes back on an answer from Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy during a CNN Republican Town Hall at Grand View University in Des Moines, Iowa, on Wednesday, December 13. Will Lanzoni/CNN

Entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy maintained his previous conspiracy theories about the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021, that it was an "inside job" when pressed repeatedly by CNN moderator Abby Phillip about the falsehoods.

When asked by Phillip if Ramaswamy was concerned that a convicted Capitol rioter highlighted his comments during sentencing, Ramaswamy began to double down on his assessment.

"The reality is, we know that there were federal law enforcement agents in that field. We don't know how many," he said before Phillip tried to jump in to follow up.

But as Phillip spoke, Ramaswamy also interjected, saying that her interruption is because "the establishment doesn't approve of this message."

Ramaswamy said "this is important to talk about," to which the crowd applauded.

"You were saying there were federal agents in the crowd on January 6. There's no evidence that there were federal agents in the crowd," Phillip said.

But Ramaswamy doubled down on his assertion, saying that he's seen "multiple informants suggesting that they were."

More context: This is one of the most pernicious right-wing falsehoods about the January 6 insurrection. It’s false, unsupported by any real evidence, and has been repeatedly rejected by FBI Director Christopher Wray, a lifelong Republican appointed by then-President Donald Trump.  

This particular conspiracy theory emerged in summer 2021 in a series of articles and TV segments from pro-Trump news outlets. The false and self-serving narrative claims the US government orchestrated the US Capitol attack, sending undercover FBI agents to trigger the violence, so they could frame Trump supporters and make Trump look bad.  

The supposed evidence backing up the theory is nothing more than a conspiratorial web of unproven claims, half-truths and inaccurate drivel from Trump supporters who have aggressively tried to absolve him of responsibility for the deadly assault that day.  

“If you are asking whether the violence at the Capitol on January 6 was part of some operation orchestrated by FBI sources and/or agents, the answer is emphatically not. No. It was not violence orchestrated by FBI sources or agents,” Wray said last month.  

About 850 rioters have been convicted of crimes stemming from January 6, according to the Justice Department. Most of them pleaded guilty, and many acknowledged that they were at the Capitol because they supported Trump.  

Ramaswamy has a history of peddling disinformation about January 6. At a campaign event last week in Iowa, he falsely claimed “the cops were just letting them in,” referring to the rioters. Here’s a previous CNN fact check from January 2022 on this specific lie.  

CNN’s Marshall Cohen contributed reporting to this post.

9:42 p.m. ET, December 13, 2023

Ramaswamy says he would lead with strength and hold himself to high presidential standard

Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy participates in a CNN Republican Town Hall moderated by CNN’s Abby Phillip at Grand View University in Des Moines, Iowa, on Wednesday, December 13, 2023.
Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy participates in a CNN Republican Town Hall moderated by CNN’s Abby Phillip at Grand View University in Des Moines, Iowa, on Wednesday, December 13, 2023. Will Lanzoni/CNN

Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy said as president, he would hold himself to a standard that would be worthy of being a role model.

"I want us to be able to look our kids in the eye and tell them that 'I want you to grow up and be like him.' It's been a long time since we held our presidents to that standard," he said during CNN's town hall in Iowa, adding that is the standard he wants voters to hold him to.

The answer came in response to a question from Rylee Miller, an undecided Republican voter who is a law student and clerk at the Marion County Attorney’s Office in Iowa. He asked Ramaswamy how he would balance his authenticity with acting presidential.

“On the debate stage, you have somewhat of abandoned the tact and diplomacy that I would look for in a president. I'm all for keeping it real and dogging the establishment, but there's a gravitas that I look for in those that represent our country. How do you see the balance between keeping it … being authentic and maintaining that presidential demeanor?” Miller asked.
"I appreciate the question. I think it’s very candid. This is what I love about Iowa. I get tougher questions from you guys than the media,” Ramaswamy answered, turning CNN’s Abby Phillips on stage.

He said it is all about protecting his "inner kindness" and that he would lead with strength. Speaking to the voter's concern about his conduct on the debate stage, Ramaswamy said he didn't "engage in four-letter words."

"There are other candidates who have called me dumb, scum and worse," he said. "I didn't go after them. But If they're going to come after me, I'm not going to be a president — whether it's Xi Jinping or Vladimir Putin or anybody — that I will roll over."

Still, the GOP candidate said that his faith teaches him that there is also a "time and place for fortitude and justice and mercy." It will take all of those attributes, and strength, to be a good president.

9:39 p.m. ET, December 13, 2023

Ramaswamy on economic wealth gap: "I'll put the Fed back in its place"

Ramaswamy answers a question during the town hall on Wednesday in Iowa.
Ramaswamy answers a question during the town hall on Wednesday in Iowa. Will Lanzoni/CNN

GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy said he would put the Federal Reserve "back in its place" and stabilize the US dollar to address the wage gap issue in the country.

"Trickle-down economics, I believe, does work when it's driven by gains in the real economy. But it doesn't work when it's created by artificial paper wealth generated by fed reserve policies. So I'll put the Fed back in its place," Ramaswamy said.

He then went on to say that he would implement a single mandate for the Federal Reserve: "Dollar stability. Peg the dollar to commodities. That ties the hands of our government. That's a good thing," he said.

More context: The Federal Reserve said Wednesday it is holding its interest rate steady and could cut rates at least three times next year. Wall Street celebrated the end of almost two years of aggressive rate hikes.

11:16 p.m. ET, December 13, 2023

Ramaswamy says he'd send undocumented immigrants in the US back to their countries of origin if elected

From CNN's Maureen Chowdhury and Aaron Pellish

Ramaswamy speaks during a CNN Republican Town Hall in Des Moines, Iowa, on Wednesday.
Ramaswamy speaks during a CNN Republican Town Hall in Des Moines, Iowa, on Wednesday. Will Lanzoni/CNN

Entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy said he would send undocumented migrants back to their countries of origin if elected president.

"I do believe that anybody who's in this country illegally needs to be returned to their country of origin," Ramaswamy said in response to a question from Jacqueline Riekena, an undecided Republican voter and health care IT manager, about securing the border.

"Not because they're all bad people. In fact, many of them are good people. Many of them, if we are being honest, if we were in their shoes, and there's a president of the United States who've been giving them a wink and nod to come on over, if we were in a tough spot, maybe we would've done the same thing. This is not a value judgment about those people. It's a value judgment about this country," he added. "We are founded on a rule of law," he said.

Ramaswamy said later on in the town hall he would end birthright citizenship for the children of undocumented immigrants as president but conceded that he would not revoke the citizenship of American-born children whose parents immigrated illegally.

Ramaswamy told CNN’s Abby Phillip he plans to end “the illegal incentives” for people to enter the US illegally, arguing the clause in the 14th Amendment that grants citizenship to all persons “born or naturalized in the United States” should not apply to the children of undocumented immigrants.

“I want to implement, I would say the best border policies of all, which is ending the illegal incentives to be here. End birthright citizenship for the kids of illegal migrants to whom the 14th Amendment does not apply,” Ramaswamy said.

When pressed by Phillip if his proposal to end birthright citizenship would apply retroactively to Americans whose parents immigrated illegally and were born in the United States, Ramaswamy said the policy would apply “prospectively,” grandfathering in the American children of undocumented immigrants starting “January 20th, 2025 going forward.”

“There is a concept in the law known as a reliance interest. If you've relied on the government, we're not going to be able to retroactively date that. But from January 20 2025 going forward, if you're born in this country as the kid of an illegal immigrant, you will not enjoy birthright citizenship and that's what the 14th Amendment says,” Ramaswamy said.

Ramaswamy also said that he expected his proposals would be challenged in the courts, eventually ending up before the Supreme Court.

9:28 p.m. ET, December 13, 2023

Ramaswamy says GOP party needs to reach younger voters as he highlights how he's different from Trump

Samona Yentes and Vivek Ramaswamy.
Samona Yentes and Vivek Ramaswamy. CNN

Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy said his party has not done a good job reaching younger voters, as one of the youngest candidates in the race.

Samona Yentes, a self-employed Iowa who is an undecided Republican voter, asked Ramaswamy what makes him different from former President Donald Trump, other than his age.

“I think we are reaching a new generation of voters in this country," he said, touting his visits to colleges, but not directly answering Yentes' question.

Ramaswamy said the country needs an outsider to get things done.

“It's going to take a president who comes from the outside, a businessman," Ramaswamy said. “It’s also going to take a president who has a deep first personal understanding of the law and the constitution."

CNN moderator Abby Phillip pressed Ramaswamy on how he is specifically looking to differentiate himself from Trump. 

The tech entrepreneur said he is the only candidate in this field who has taken a "clear stand" in being against using eminent domain "to seize foreign land to build a carbon capture pipeline using federal subsidies."

More context: Generally, the government is allowed to acquire privately owned land for public use, otherwise known as eminent domain. Border barriers built under previous administrations have largely gone up in areas where land was federally owned, but extending the wall, as former President Donald Trump pledged to, required taking privately owned land. Under the Trump administration, officials moved at a faster rate to obtain land.

“Carbon capture” is often used as catch-all term for what are actually two sets of technologies – carbon capture and carbon removal. Carbon capture reduces the amount of carbon pollution that would otherwise go into the atmosphere by catching it at the source of pollution, then storing it or reusing it.

9:04 p.m. ET, December 13, 2023

CNN's town hall with Vivek Ramaswamy is underway

From CNN's Eric Bradner and Aaron Pellish

Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy participates in a CNN Republican Town Hall moderated by CNN’s Abby Phillip at Grand View University in Des Moines, Iowa, on Wednesday, December 13, 2023.
Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy participates in a CNN Republican Town Hall moderated by CNN’s Abby Phillip at Grand View University in Des Moines, Iowa, on Wednesday, December 13, 2023. CNN

Vivek Ramaswamy is fielding questions in Iowa tonight during a CNN town hall — less than five weeks before the state’s January 15 caucuses kick off the 2024 Republican presidential nominating contest.

The 38-year-old tech entrepreneur launched his outsider campaign in February, which has focused on combatting “woke” ideology, exposing government corruption and ushering in a younger generation into the GOP. His campaign, however, has so far struggled to gain traction and break out in the thinning GOP primary.

Months ago, Ramaswamy was gaining traction in the polls. Now, the Ohio entrepreneur is still stuck in the single digits in a thinning GOP primary pack.

Former President Donald Trump — whom Ramaswamy has defended and praised repeatedly — remains the front-runner for the GOP nomination. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley are competing to be seen as the main Trump alternative in a field that has grown smaller with the recent exits of former Vice President Mike Pence and South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott.

The town hall will stream live on CNN Max and for pay TV subscribers via CNN.com, CNN-connected TV and mobile apps. It will also be available on demand beginning Thursday to pay TV subscribers via CNN.com, CNN apps and Cable Operator Platforms.

8:07 p.m. ET, December 13, 2023

Here's what to watch for at CNN's town hall with Vivek Ramaswamy

From CNN's Eric Bradner and Aaron Pellish

Vivek Ramaswamy, right, speaks with CNN's chief political correspondent Dana Bash, left, in the Spin Room after the Republican presidential primary debate hosted by NewsNation on Wednesday, December 6, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Vivek Ramaswamy, right, speaks with CNN's chief political correspondent Dana Bash, left, in the Spin Room after the Republican presidential primary debate hosted by NewsNation on Wednesday, December 6, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Gerald Herbert/AP

Biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy is set to field questions from Iowa voters Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET at a CNN town hall, less than five weeks before the state’s January 15 caucuses kick off the 2024 Republican presidential nominating contest.

The town hall will stream live on CNN Max and for pay TV subscribers via CNN.com, CNN connected TV and mobile apps. It will also be available on demand beginning Thursday to pay TV subscribers via CNN.com, CNN apps and Cable Operator Platforms.

Here are five things to watch:

Differences with Haley: Among the most memorable exchanges at the four Republican presidential primary debates so far this year have been those between Ramaswamy and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley. On and off stage, their clashes have taken personal turns. Haley in recent weeks has risen in polls, challenging Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ status as the second-place contender in Iowa and emerging as the party’s top-polling alternative to Trump in GOP primary surveys in New Hampshire and South Carolina, her home state. Even if Ramaswamy doesn’t climb in the polls himself, his criticism has the potential to shape the GOP race.

No one to brawl with: To date, Ramaswamy might be best known to voters for his sharp-elbowed, stage-dominating debate performances. He has relished picking fights with rivals such as Haley, Christie, former Vice President Mike Pence and others. If he is going to jump out of the single digits in national and early-state polls of likely Republican primary voters, he’ll need to create memorable moments of his own, outside of the context of playing the foil in debates.

“Double Grassley”: Ramaswamy has focused on Iowa throughout his campaign. As part of that strategy, Ramaswamy announced his intention to have visited every Iowa county twice before the caucuses on January 15. Earlier this month, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis completed his goal of visiting all 99 Iowa counties – a feat dubbed the “Full Grassley” after Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley, who visits all counties in the state every year. Ramaswamy also pledged earlier this month to host more than 200 events in the state before the caucuses, a massive undertaking that speaks to how critical success in Iowa is to Ramaswamy’s potential path to the nomination.

Conspiracy theories: At the Alabama debate, Ramaswamy said the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the US Capitol “looks like it was an inside job.” After the debate, he told CNN, “I do think we have a government that’s consistently lied to its people.” Over the weekend, he embraced another fringe theory, telling a crowd in Sioux Center, Iowa, that the plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer was an inside job. Ramaswamy’s embrace of conspiracy theories could win him support from a share of the GOP base — many of the same pro-Trump voters who have parroted the former president’s lie that the 2020 election was stolen. But it could also alienate the broader general electorate. It’s likely to be a topic he addresses Wednesday night.

Questions of faith: Ramaswamy could also use Wednesday’s town hall to address his religion in a bid to assuage Iowa’s substantial evangelical Christian constituency that he, a Hindu, shares their values. He often cites his education at a Catholic high school in Cincinnati to substantiate his connection to Christian values. “When I read the Ten Commandments for the first time … it didn’t feel like I was reading those values for the first time,” he said last month in Ida Grove, Iowa. “And that’s when it hit me: Those values don’t belong to Hindus. Those values don’t belong to Christians. Those values belong to God, actually, and those are the values that this nation was absolutely founded on.”

8:17 p.m. ET, December 13, 2023

Feud between Haley and Ramaswamy has grown more heated with every GOP debate

From CNN's Aaron Pellish and Ebony Davis

Nikki Haley looks on as Vivek Ramaswamy passes by during a break at the fourth Republican candidates' presidential debate at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, on December 6.
Nikki Haley looks on as Vivek Ramaswamy passes by during a break at the fourth Republican candidates' presidential debate at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, on December 6. Brian Snyder/Reuters

Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy clashed throughout the fourth Republican primary debate in Tuscaloosa, Alabama earlier this month, reigniting one of the most contentious feuds of the primary cycle thus far, which was punctuated by Ramaswamy’s accusation that Haley was “corrupt.”

Ramaswamy attacked Haley in the opening minutes of the debate, criticizing her for accepting donations from wealthy donors, including some who have supported President Joe Biden, and for her support of the US providing aid to Ukraine.

Haley responded to attacks of her growing support from wealthy donors by dismissing Ramaswamy as “just jealous” and said she doesn’t change her positions to appease donors.

Haley and Ramaswamy have traded barbs at each of the previous three debates, with each exchange heightening the tension between the two. The source of their disagreements typically focuses on foreign policy issues, but as the two continue to clash, their attacks have become increasingly personal. The substance and tone of those moments at the fourth debate appeared to build on the history of confrontation between them, as both candidates leaned into personal attacks.

Ramaswamy reiterated his attacks on Haley’s ties to donors throughout the debate, culminating in him holding up a handwritten sign on his notepad that read “Nikki = Corrupt” as he defended himself from claims that his attacks against her were sexist.

“After the third debate, when I criticized Ronna McDaniel after five failed years of leadership of this party and criticized Nikki for her corrupt foreign dealings as a military contractor, she said that I have a woman problem. Nikki, I don’t have a woman problem. You have a corruption problem. And I think that that’s what people need to know. Nikki is corrupt,” he said, emphasizing his argument by holding up the sign, which he had written in large font on his notepad, for the audience to see.

When asked if she would like to respond to Ramaswamy’s blunt attack, Haley dismissively declined.

“No, it’s not worth my time to respond to him,” she said.

Read more about their clashes here.