Donald Trump rows back on abortion claim

Republican frontrunner Donald Trump sought to contain the fallout from his comments on punishing women for having an abortion, characterising the flap as a “simple misspeak” as his White House rivals pounced on the controversy.

The billionaire businessman rowed back rapidly from his statement that women should be punished for having abortions if the procedure is banned in the US. The comments triggered a flood of rebukes from both sides of the abortion debate, and his campaign tried to address the repercussions.

“You have a presidential candidate that clarified the record not once but twice,” Trump spokeswoman Katrina Pierson told CNN, describing the initial comments as a “simple misspeak”.