Conservative star Tomi Lahren came out in favor of abortion rights - and conservatives are freaking out
Conservative firebrand Tomi Lahren sparked backlash after identifying as pro-choice during an appearance on ABC's "The View" on Friday.
Lahren, who hosts "Tomi" for The Blaze, said when asked about her stance on reproductive rights, "I can't sit here and be a hypocrite and say I'm for limited government, but I think the government should decide what women do with their bodies."
She added: "I can say, you know what, I'm for limited government, so stay out of my guns and you can stay out of my body as well."
Her words did not go over well with conservatives, 60% of whom believe that abortion should be illegal in most cases, according to the Pew Research Center.
She was criticized by Glenn Beck, founder of The Blaze, for calling herself a libertarian while supporting the Republican healthcare overhaul, Trump's executive orders, and economic stimulus.
Lahren was also slammed by The Reagan Battalion, an anonymous conservative group on Twitter that gained notoriety after posting footage of Milo Yiannopoulos appearing to condone sexual relationships between "younger boys and older men." Yiannopoulos resigned from Breitbart News shortly after.
The Reagan Battalion's tweet pointed to a tweet by Richard Spencer, a white-nationalist and leader of the alt-right movement. Spencer's tweet defended Lahren's position.
Other conservatives turned on Lahren as well:
Lahren later took to Twitter to defend herself. "I speak my truth. If you don't like it, tough. I will always be honest and stand in my truth," she tweeted.
One of her coworkers, Kate Scanlon, who writes for The Blaze, shot back shortly after: "There is no 'my truth.' There is only the truth," Scanlon tweeted.
Gabby Morrongiello, White House correspondent for the Washington Examiner, a right-leaning publication, also criticized Lahren.
"'My truth' is the new 'alternative facts,'" Morrongiello tweeted.
But Lahren fired back at her critics, writing, "Listen, I am not glorifying abortion. I don't personally advocate for it. I just don't think it's the government's place to dictate."
Lahren wields a significant amount of influence in conservative circles, particularly on Facebook, where she has over 4 million fans and her videos average approximately 5 million views.