NJ Politicians React Strongly To Possible Roe v. Wade Reversal

NEW JERSEY — New Jersey lawmakers have added their voices to the discussion surrounding a leaked Supreme Court draft decision that would overturn Roe v. Wade, which made abortion legal in all 50 states.

Governor Phil Murphy reiterated that a reversal of Roe v. Wade and the related Planned Parenthood v. Casey decisions would not affect those seeking an abortion in New Jersey.

Murphy called for Congress to pass legislation immediately to protect reproductive rights across the U.S. during a Tuesday news conference.

"We must ensure that every American woman has the freedom that every New Jersey woman has," Murphy said. "And if this Congress won't protect reproductive freedom, America needs to elect a Congress in November that will."

Here's what other NJ lawmakers are saying:

Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ): "This opinion would strip people of the constitutional right to make their own medical decisions with their doctor, even in the most extreme and unthinkable circumstances, such as in the case of rape, incest, or if someone’s life is endangered by continuing a pregnancy."

NJ Senate Majority Leader M. Teresa Ruiz (D-NJ-29): “I went to bed early and woke up in the middle of the night to the news that we could be facing a nightmare. In New Jersey, we prepared for the possibility that Roe v. Wade would be overturned. I am grateful that Senator Loretta Weinberg championed a bill that I co-sponsored that protects a women's right to choose in New Jersey. But this isn't just about us. This is about every woman in America and the future of our daughters. This pending U.S. Supreme Court decision is a step backward on our reproductive freedoms.”

Rep. Donald Norcross (D-NJ-1): "The draft Supreme Court opinion is the latest front in the Republican Party's war on women's rights. It is a direct assault on women's reproductive freedom. If this draft opinion stands, it will cause immeasurable harm to countless women, particularly poor and working-class women, by restricting their fundamental right to make their own health care decisions."

Rep. Jefferson Van Drew (R-NJ-2): "This leak is inexcusable and undermines the sovereignty of our nation's highest court. Regardless of where an individual falls on the political spectrum, this leak compromises the integrity of the Supreme Court and diminishes the public's trust in the judiciary's ability to issue impartial, neutral decisions regarding the most important and controversial issues facing our nation."

Rep. Andy Kim (D-NJ-3): "Many are feeling deep anxiety and fear tonight about this. This is a draft doc, but it's still a stark reminder that we cannot take anything for granted. The next 5 [years] in this country will shape the next 5 decades. It's on all of us to fight for fairness and equality."

Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ-4): "A new national debate on abortion has begun and fresh scrutiny must be brought to bear on how the lives of unborn children are destroyed including by dismemberment with sharp knives, pulverization by powerful suction devices, or poisoning by any number of toxic chemicals."

Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-NJ-7): "I will just say that the people that I represent across the 7th District — some are Democrat, some are Republican, some are unaffiliated — We are all tired of the division and the conflict in this country and of having our lives unended again and again. The last thing that we need is for a radical Supreme Court to rip to shreds 50 years of settled law in this country that the overwhelming majority of Americans support."

Rep. Donald M. Payne Jr. (D-NJ-10): "This absolute travesty is the direct result of the continued radicalism of the Republican Party and its turn to the far right. Now, women across the country are in jeopardy of falling backwards to a dark past when access to a safe abortion procedure was difficult or impossible."

Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ-12): "The leaked draft opinion is an attack on poor and working-class women across the country. With Republican state houses across the nation passing "trigger laws" to eliminate a woman's right to choose once a ruling comes down, the time for talk is over."