New Jersey Democratic State Committee Chairman LeRoy J. Jones, Jr., and Vice Chair Peg Schaffer today released the following joint statement denouncing the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, eliminating abortion rights in much of the country and endangering women’s lives.

“This decision is an unprecedented assault on women and their right to control their own bodies and make decisions about their own health care, and it once again proves Republicans’ utter contempt for women in this country. The Republican Party and its agents on the Supreme Court gutted the Voting Rights Act, weakened gun safety laws that are proven to keep communities safe, and have now destroyed 50 years of legal precedent in overturning Roe — all in the service of forcing their extreme conservative agenda on an American public that absolutely does not support it.

“At this tenuous moment in our nation’s history, it’s impossible not to question the Supreme Court’s legitimacy and its ability to serve its constitutional function. Minority rule cannot continue to be imposed on an American society that wants to move forward into a better future, not be pulled backwards by a radical court that is completely out of touch with the will of the people.

“Let’s be clear – this is not just about Roe. This is about Republicans seeking to create a Christian theocracy at all levels of government and upending our democracy. Justice Thomas proved that in his concurring opinion, where he disgustingly signaled that rulings protecting same-sex relationships, same-sex marriage, and the right to contraception should be next on the Court’s chopping block.

“While we can be thankful that the right to an abortion was codified into New Jersey state law last year by Governor Murphy and the Democratic-majority state legislature, millions of women across the country will now face a far different reality. We must collectively rise up against this tide of radical conservatism and vote to defeat every single enabler of this destructive agenda. ”

InsiderNJ was interviewing Chairman Jones when the Supreme Court rendered its decision.

His immediate reaction can be viewed here: