Another day, another glaring example of how when Donald Trump flaps his lips he says nothing, nothing that constitutes a modicum of meaning.

Trump, appearing in a taped town hall for MSNBC set to air Wednesday night, was asked by Chris Matthews about the highly-charged subject of abortion. He babbled and burbled in his usual incoherent manner when pressed by Excitable Boy Matthews, then he finally said that yes, women should receive “some form of punishment” for procuring an abortion.

He then later “clarified” when he received blowback from both the Left and the Right. Here’s his official “clarification” (i.e. backpedal, backpedal):

Trump issues clarification of his abortion-punishment position – and by "clarification" I mean "complete reversal" pic.twitter.com/ZRbAxgPxVm

— Anthony Zurcher (@awzurcher) March 30, 2016

Ted Cruz, who has always been staunchly pro life, issued the following statement:

.@tedcruz statement on Trump's abortion comments: pic.twitter.com/pdZuxkfWfN

— Sopan Deb (@SopanDeb) March 30, 2016

Cruz is absolutely correct here. Trump has never contemplated anything of depth or substance, and it shows. It’s doubtful that he’s read anything about life politics and policies, and when caught with his figurative pants around his orange ankles, he scrambles that Very Good Brain of his to assemble some kind of answer he thinks will assuage pro lifers.

And it wasn’t only Cruz who noticed the utter vacuousness of his unreasoned response.

I'm starting to get the impression that Trump isn't running a policy-oriented campaign https://t.co/kRuaY2gtBF

— Lachlan Markay (@lachlan) March 30, 2016

Because he's a liberal caricature of a conservative. He has no idea what he's talking about. https://t.co/6sxXjQ0wNu

— Gabriel Malor (@gabrielmalor) March 30, 2016

Punishing women for having abortions? Is Trump running for the #US presidency or Al-Qaeda's shura council? https://t.co/dVoTrdovR8

— Haidar Sumeri (@IraqiSecurity) March 30, 2016

Even the most ardent pro-lifers think this is an awful, awful idea. That's how tone deaf and inept he is. https://t.co/qEfUwYF7yn

— Sean Davis (@seanmdav) March 30, 2016

What. In. The. Actual. Fuck.

I'm pro-life. We love, we don't punish. Abortion is a sad thing. https://t.co/ZOvRG2ZFap

— Emily Zanotti (@emzanotti) March 30, 2016

An example of his profound ignorance doing damage to the movement he's pretending to support. https://t.co/jOUi1sEXuB

— Guy Benson (@guypbenson) March 30, 2016

Hillary pounces on Trump's ignorant distortion of pro-life position. He's a wrecking ball against conservatism. https://t.co/W79J1xJqdt

— Guy Benson (@guypbenson) March 30, 2016

Guy Benson is spot on — you can bet Hillary Clinton is storing up the verbal sewage Trump spews like an army stores ordnance, ready to fire during the general campaign. And Republicans will not only lose the White House, but down ticket seats will fall to the Democrats like the British fell at Gallipoli.

It’s not as if there is a dearth of carefully considered thought on abortion. In 2007 National Review published a symposium featuring conservative thinkers of undoubtedly bigger brain space than Trump addressing the very issue of women’s culpability for abortions. He could’ve availed himself of this information, along with other books and publications, to develop a carefully crafted opinion on life issues. He could’ve consulted conservative thinkers and writers. But no. Trump of the Very Good Brain had better things to do, like becoming The Biggest Reality TV Star. Significant accomplishments like that, you know.

Face it, Trump supporters, your Dear Leader has never given much thought to anything of substance. Donald Trump’s policy statements remind me of this old cartoon:

Trump supporters — Just. Stop. You’re being duped.

The man is incoherent, unreasonable, ignorant, and perhaps has mental disturbances. He’s set conservative causes back decades with his bizarre statements based on nothing more than sheer ignorance, the unwillingness to learn that of which he does not know, and the arrogance to think that he can achieve the presidency simply by conning the masses. Why do you think he “loves the poorly educated?”