DeSantis responds to Trump's criticism of Florida's six-week abortion ban

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis responded to criticism from former President Donald Trump, who had said that "many people" think Florida's six-week ban on most abortions is "too harsh."

"Protecting an unborn child when there's a detectable heartbeat is something that probably 99% of pro-lifers support," DeSantis said at a Stop Human Trafficking event Monday in response to a reporter's question about Trump's criticism. "It's something that other states, like Iowa under Governor Kim Reynolds, have enacted."

DeSantis also directly criticized Trump, whose Mar-a-Lago home is in Palm Beach, Florida.

"I think that, as a Florida resident, you know, he didn't give an answer about, 'Would you have signed the heartbeat bill that Florida did?'" DeSantis said. "I signed the bill, I was proud to do it, and he won't answer whether he would sign it or not."

Trump had criticized DeSantis during an interview with the outlet The Messenger earlier in the day Monday.

"He has to do what he has to do," Trump said about how DeSantis signed Florida's six-week abortion ban into law. "If you look at what DeSantis did, a lot of people don't even know if he knew what he was doing. But he signed six weeks, and many people within the pro-life movement feel that that was too harsh."

The former president would not say whether he believed a six-week ban goes too far.

Trump has been criticized by anti-abortion groups for not supporting pro-life policies enough after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year.

Madeleine Hubbard is an international correspondent for Just the News. Follow her on Twitter or Instagram.