Or is this talk about abortion being murder simply hot air?"
I am pro-life, but I am of the personal opinion that most women these days are so brainwashed into believing that what they have conceived in their bodies is "just a clump of cells" that they (unlike the "doctors" performing the procedure) are not even cognizant that they are killing a baby. I would liken it to someone telling you to shoot at a barrel. They know there is a person inside, but you don't. The guilt is on them, not you.
Add to that the the emotional pressure and the coercive and dishonest tactics of Planned Parenthood and other abortion promoters, and I have serious doubts about the complete culpability of most women getting abortions. In a lot of ways, they are the second victim.
You’re avoiding the question - what punishment should a woman receive for knowingly aborting her baby?
It’s a tough question, but a very important one. If abortion were to be made illegal what would you do to the woman who committed it?
This is something that is never addressed by the anti-abortion side. Now that Trump has been asked, look for every conservative candidate at all levels to be asked the same question - and they better be well prepared or they will be skewered.