Dr. Ben Carson, who has been mentioned as a potential running mate for presumptive Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, called for a federal ban on abortion.
Carson, a noted pediatric neurosurgeon who served as secretary of housing and urban development in Trump's administration, said, in his new book, "The Perilous Fight," that we need legislation that guarantees the right to life for all American citizens.
His view on a federal abortion ban is a notable difference from Trump, NBC News said.
"What is needed is legislation that guarantees the right to life for all American citizens, including those still in the womb," Carson wrote in the book, released Tuesday. "Therefore, we must be boldly vocal about saving our fellow human beings through the legislative process. They are counting on us!"
Carson also said he could consider allowing women to terminate pregnancies to save their lives but that he did not believe in exceptions for rape and incest, according to NBC News.
"Rape and incest — I would not be in favor of killing a baby because the baby came about in that way," he said.
Trump said in an interview it should be left to the states whether to prosecute women for abortions or whether to monitor pregnancies. He declined to comment on access to the abortion pill mifepristone, which has been embroiled in an intense legal battle, The Associated Press said.
In an interview published by Time magazine, Trump responded to questions about how he would handle various abortion questions if elected by repeatedly saying it should be left up to the states.
"You don't need a federal ban," he said. "Roe v. Wade ... wasn't about abortion so much as bringing it back to the states. So the states would negotiate deals. Florida is going to be different from Georgia and Georgia is going to be different from other places."