Rep. Brandon Gill, Texas Republican, didn’t pull any punches at a House Judiciary subcommittee hearing Tuesday on the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act.
He asked the lone Democratic witness, American University law professor Jessica Waters, about her “favorite type of abortion,” and when she said she had no preference, he began describing the various procedures in detail.
“Let me read through a couple of different methods and I want to get your take on how much you like these,” Mr. Gill said.
He calmly read descriptions of surgical abortion techniques, including “suction abortion,” “dilation and curettage,” and “dilation and evacuation,” and “saline injection.”
“It sounds kind of gross, doesn’t it? Sounds pretty gruesome. Would you agree?” asked Mr. Gill.
She said, “I stand by how I answered your question fully and accurately.”
At the outset, Ms. Waters, a senior scholar in residence at the American’s Washington College of Law, told Mr. Gill that “I’m an advocate for patients having access to the full realm of reproductive health care.”
After describing the saline-injection process, Mr. Gill asked, “Do you prefer that method?”
Ms. Waters responded: “I would prefer to talk about the subject of the hearing.”
Replied Mr. Gill: “This is the subject of the hearing. This is about protests outside of abortion clinics. I’m asking you about abortion.”
She said: “I stand by my prior testimony.”
Mr. Gill concluded: “I wouldn’t want to talk about this, either, if I were you, because it’s barbaric and evil.”
The House Judiciary subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government hearing focused on the Biden administration’s use of the FACE Act to prosecute pro-life demonstrators blocking entrances to abortion clinics.
Watch this.@repbrandongill leaves an abortion advocate stunned after confronting her with the reality of abortion, reading the descriptions of each method
“What’s your favorite type of abortion?” pic.twitter.com/tpSjOblndv
— Lila Rose (@LilaGraceRose) April 28, 2026
The video clip of Mr. Gill quizzing the witness quickly went viral on social media, drawing cheers from pro-life advocates and conservatives.
“Master class in questioning a witness,” said former Republican Rep. Jason Chaffetz of Utah on X. “This is extremely grotesque and disturbing, but this is abortion.”
Sen. Mike Lee, Utah Republican, posted: “Cruel, barbaric, and dehumanizing acts are sometimes buried in legalistic euphemisms for purposes of public discourse. Those who defend such acts don’t always want to discuss the meaning behind the sanitized terminology.”
On the other side was Rep. Shri Thanedar, Michigan Democrat, who accused him of “creepy” badgering of the witness.
“Remember folks, Republicans are NOT the party of creepy men trying to intrude their way into women’s private business, they just want to interrogate you about your favorite abortion method at a national congressional hearing,” he wrote.
Mr. Gill replied on X: “Which abortion is your favorite? The one where the unborn baby’s body is crush[ed] and sucked out with a hose or the one where the baby is cut apart with a knife? Please enlighten us.”
The Michigan Democrat later elaborated on X about his preferred abortions — those that the state allows.
“My favorite kind of abortion is the kind that’s safe, legal, accessible, and none of your damn business to regulate,” he said.
He went to describe criticism of abortion as “fearmongering.”
“And no amount of fearmongering by describing what goes on to a half-ounce fetus with no consciousness, self-awareness, or feeling of pain is going to change that,” he said.
After the exchange at the hearing, subcommittee chairman Chip Roy said that Mr. Gill’s line of questioning was relevant.
“A good deal of the efforts by my Democratic colleagues to talk about this issue has moved to the core question of abortion and the activities that are carried on at Planned Parenthood and other facilities,” said Mr. Roy, Texas Republican. “The question by the gentleman from Texas is in line.”
