NEWARK, NJ – Today, supporters of Planned Parenthood Action Fund of New Jersey, Senator Cory Booker, and Senator Bob Menendez held a press conference on the steps of the Essex County Courthouse, calling on senators to reject the nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court.

President Trump has made clear that he would only nominate justices to the court who would “automatically” overturn Roe v. Wade – the historic case that legalized abortion in the United States. We take President Trump at his word: Kavanaugh is committed to gutting Roe v. Wade, and the burden is on Kavanaugh to demonstrate otherwise. In the past, Kavanaugh has ruled to limit access to safe, legal abortion. Just last year, he attempted to use his judicial power to prevent a young undocumented woman in U.S. custody from accessing a safe, legal abortion. Had Kavanaugh had his way, the government would have delayed the young woman’s abortion by more than one month, pushing her into the second trimester. He’s also ruled against women’s access to birth control: Kavanaugh authored the dissenting opinion in the D.C. Circuit’s 2015 ruling on the Affordable Care Act’s birth control benefit, writing that he believed employers have the right to deny employees health insurance coverage for birth control.

Planned Parenthood advocates call for the Senate to evaluate any Trump nominee to the Supreme Court by the Personal Liberty Standard: the Senate must confirm only if a justice declares that the U.S. Constitution protects individual liberty and the right of all people to make personal decisions about their bodies and personal relationships – including the right to use contraception and the right to have an abortion.

With Justice Kennedy’s pending retirement, the right to access safe and legal abortion in this country is on the line. The majority of Americans – 72 percent, including a majority of Democrats, Independents, and Republicans – do not want to see Roe v. Wade overturned. Now, millions of people and elected officials across the country are fighting to keep a dangerous nominee from the Supreme Court, asking senators to reject any anti-abortion appointment that Trump puts forth.

Photos and video of today’s event in Newark are available at https://www.facebook.com/PPActionNJ/.

“I’m proud to know that we have two Senators from New Jersey who are willing to stand up for the right to access safe, legal abortion and birth control, and who will oppose President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, and any nominees that do not meet the Personal Liberty Standard. Planned Parenthood will always stand up for the right of every person to access the health care they need and deserve.”

“Judge Kavanaugh’s nomination poses a clear threat to so many of the rights New Jerseyans hold dear, including the reproductive rights of women, voting rights, labor rights, and the right to quality, affordable health care. We are at a moral moment in our country, and there’s simply too much at stake to stand idly by. We all must resolve to fight back against this nomination and cast our light by standing up and speaking out.”

“With President Trump’s nomination of Brett Kavanaugh, the stakes have never been higher, the threat to women’s health has never been greater, and our commitment to reproductive freedom must be stronger than ever.

“Today I stand with Planned Parenthood to say that reproductive rights are human rights, and that we cannot afford to let this President tip the scales of justice against women, families, patients, voters and consumers for generations to come.”