Sen. Lindsey Graham introduced a new bill Tuesday limiting most “late-term” abortions nationwide — fewer than three months after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and just two months out from the midterm elections, where the issue is likely to be front and center. 

“I think we should have a law at the federal level that would say after 15 weeks, no abortion on demand — except in cases of rape, incest, [or] to save the life of the mother,” Graham said at a press conference unveiling the Protecting Pain-Capable Unborn Children from Late-Term Abortions Act alongside anti-abortion leaders.

“That’s where we should be as Americans.”

Graham argued that at the 15-week point of a pregnancy, a baby has “well-developed” nerve endings allowing them to feel pain. He added that if a child was born prematurely at about 15 weeks, doctors could give them anesthetic in a bid to save their life.

“So here’s our point: if you have to provide anesthesia to keep the baby from feeling pain to help save its life, should we as a nation be aborting babies that can feel excruciating pain from an abortion?” he said.

Graham has repeatedly introduced bills banning abortion after the 20-week mark. His most recent proposal, introduced in January 2021, failed to pass.

The lawmaker acknowledged that his proposed 15-week ban would likely be thwarted by Democrats, but vowed to have a vote on the bill if Republicans were to take back the House and Senate in the November midterms.

“If the Democrats are in charge, I don’t know if we’ll ever have a vote on our bill,” he said.

Graham said his proposed legislation was an alternative to the “radical” bill put forward by Democrats that seeks to allow abortions up until birth.

His bill quickly came under fire from top Democrats, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.

“Proposals like the one today send a clear message from MAGA Republicans to women across the country: your body, our choice,” Schumer said on the Senate floor.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre also slammed the bill as being “wildly out of step with what Americans believe.”

“While President Biden and Vice President Harris are focused on the historic passage of the Inflation Reduction Act to reduce the cost of prescription drugs, health care, and energy – and to take unprecedented action to address climate change – Republicans in Congress are focused on taking rights away from millions of women,” she said in a statement, adding the Biden administration and Democrats in Congress “are committed to restoring the protections of Roe v. Wade.”

Graham argued his legislation would put America’s abortion regulations in a position that “is fairly consistent with the rest of the world” – noting his 15-week proposal is more lenient than laws in place in Belgium, Germany, Spain, France, Denmark and Norway.

“I think there are 47 of the 50 European countries have a ban on abortion from 12 to 15 weeks,” he said.

“I’ve chosen to craft legislation that I think is eminently reasonable in the eyes of the world and, I hope, the American people,” Graham continued, adding that “pretty much a strong majority of Americans believe abortion should be the exception not the rule” at 15 weeks.

Abortion activists criticized Graham’s bill, noting the phrase “late-term” is usually used to refer to abortions between or after the 21 to 24-week mark.

“[Fifteen] weeks is not ‘late term,’ particularly given the significant challenges to access around the country. And let’s be clear: this is their first step to a full ban,” tweeted Christina Reynolds of the Emily’s List organization.

Observers suggest that Graham’s proposed legislation is an attempt to portray Republicans as more moderate on abortion, which Democrats are expected to play up ahead of polling day Nov. 8.

According to a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted Sept. 7-12, 63% of respondents said they were less likely to back candidates who support laws that ban or severely restrict abortion.

GOP candidates in some battleground states — including Pennsylvania, Michigan, Colorado, Arizona and North Carolina — have already started to tone down the hardline anti-abortion rhetoric they campaigned on in the primaries.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee put out a list last month of GOP candidates in those states who have scrubbed abortion language from campaign websites or adjusted their language on the campaign trail.

In a polling memo released Tuesday, the Republican National Committee argued that Democrats support abortion “at any time for any reason.”

Graham, meanwhile, has remained steadfast on the issue.

When a draft opinion in the case that overturned Roe v. Wade was leaked in May, Graham argued the Supreme Court “created a constitutional right that didn’t exist” when it ruled to affirm abortion rights in 1973.

“Roe v. Wade created a constitutional right that didn’t exist in the written constitution,” Graham told “Fox News Sunday” at the time. “This created division from the day it was decided until now.”

And when he last introduced his “Pain-Capable” legislation in early 2021, Graham insisted: “I don’t believe abortion, five months into pregnancy, makes us a better nation.”

“America is at her best when she’s standing up for the least among us, and the sooner we pass this legislation into law, the better,” he added. “We are on the right side of history.”