WASHINGTON (AP) – When Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio staked out a hard-line position on abortion in the first GOP debate, Hillary Rodham Clinton took notice.

The Democratic front-runner quickly blasted Rubio’s assertion that he did not support abortion exceptions for victims of rape and incest as “offensive and troubling.” At Clinton’s Brooklyn campaign headquarters, aides saw echoes of the controversial candidate comments on abortion that hurt Republicans with women voters during the 2012 election.

Since then, Rubio has been finessing his statements on the sensitive topic. In an interview with The Associated Press, Rubio said he unequivocally backs abortion exceptions when the life of the mother is in danger and would also back legislation with allowances for cases of rape and incest – even though he personally doesn’t support those exceptions.