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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jul 26, 2022 / 16:12 pm (CNA).

National pro-life leaders are condemning Rep. Matt Gaetz, a Republican congressman from Florida, for his crude comments on the physical appearance of abortion activists. 

“SHAME on @mattgaetz for this hideous comment,” Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, tweeted, linking to a video of Gaetz’s recent speech.

On July 23, at the Turning Point USA (TPUSA) Student Action Summit in Tampa, Fla., Gaetz used derogatory terms to describe the appearance of abortion supporters.

“Why is it that the women with the least likelihood of getting pregnant are the ones most worried about having abortions?” he asked. “Nobody wants to impregnate you if you look like a thumb.”

Characterizing pro-abortion activists as 5’2” and 350 pounds, Gaetz continued by saying, “You look like you got ankles weaker than the legal reasoning behind Roe v. Wade.”

Gaetz also said in his TPUSA speech that pro-abortion protesters “need to get up and march for like an hour a day, swing those arms, get the blood pumping, maybe mix in a salad.”

In response, another pro-life leader, Students for Life of America President Kristan Hawkins, publicly criticized Gaetz’s speech on Twitter. Hawkins said that “the whole point” of the pro-life movement is to respect all humans, regardless of their size or any other traits. She compared his comments to attacking preborn babies for their size.

“If you want to claim to hold this pro-life worldview, your actions will need to show that you do not mete out peoples’ value based on what they look like,” Hawkins tweeted. “Rise above & commit to the real foundation of our movement.”

The public reaction prompted outlets to bring to light similar comments Gaetz has made in the past. Insider cited a tweet Gaetz made in May, where he asked: “How many of the women rallying against overturning Roe are over-educated, under-loved millennials who sadly return from protests to a lonely microwave dinner with their cats, and no bumble matches?”

Gaetz continues to defend what he said at the TPUSA Student Action Summit, despite negative feedback from both pro-abortion and pro-life activists.