Cruz vows support for Catholics’ conscience rights in birth control

In an interview with EWTN’s Raymond Arroyo, Texas Senator and Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz reassured Catholics that differences between his denomination and theirs would not translate to a difference in his pro-life principles as president.

“I recognize that many faithful Catholics, for religious reasons, don’t use birth control,” Cruz said, referring to remarks in which he joked that “Heidi and I, we have two little girls. I’m very glad we don’t have seventeen” to illustrate that the War on Women was “nonsense.”

“That is obviously their right, to follow the teachings of their faith. I’m a Southern Baptist, that is not the teaching of my faith, but I respect those observant Catholics who follow that teaching — but nobody is suggesting banning birth control.”

“I am unequivocally pro-life,” he continued, arguing that “right now, today, the Obama administration is litigating against the Little Sisters of the Poor, trying to impose millions of dollars in fines against the Sisters, under Obamacare, in order to force the Sisters to pay for abortion-inducing drugs and others.”

Though Cruz confirmed that he does not oppose the personal use of birth control in general, his answer recognized the difference between methods that are and are not abortifacient in nature. Fellow GOP contenders Marco Rubio and Ben Carson are pro-life without exceptions, but have backed the potentially abortifacient morning-after pill.