FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 6, 2013
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Washington, D.C. – Ilyse Hogue, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, issued the following statement regarding anti-choice Gov. Chris Christie’s (R-NJ) interim appointment of Jeffrey Chiesa to serve in the U. S. Senate:
“As we continue to mourn the loss of our longtime friend and champion in choice, Frank Lautenberg, it is our sincere hope that, while he fills this U.S. Senate vacancy, Jeffrey Chiesa will protect women and families to the same high standards set by his predecessor.
“Because Gov. Chris Christie’s anti-choice actions have crippled women’s health and family-planning programs in the Garden State, it remains to be seen whether Chiesa will put his affiliated politics aside and represent the progressive, pro-choice values New Jerseyans have voted for time and time again.
“Although Chiesa’s time in the U.S. Senate will be brief, we expect that he will do nothing to taint the legacy of this seat. Frank Lautenberg was a fighter for what was right, over what was politically expedient. Frank Lautenberg was a fighter for women and their families—we can only hope Chiesa will do the same.”
NARAL Pro-Choice America and its network of state affiliates are dedicated to protecting and expanding reproductive freedom for all Americans. NARAL works to guarantee that every woman has the right to make personal decisions regarding the full range of reproductive choices, including preventing unintended pregnancy, bearing healthy children, and choosing legal abortion. In recognition of its work defending our constitutional right to choose, Fortune Magazine described NARAL as “one of the top 10 advocacy groups in America.”
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