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SOUTH BRUNSWICK – Phil Murphy made it seem very simple.
“You are either with reproductive freedom being defended, or you’re not. You are not kinda there. This is black or white.”
The governor was speaking Wednesday at a “roundtable” event at the local library designed to boost the candidacy of the LD-16 Democratic team. Senator Andew Zwicker and Assemblyman Roy Freiman are seeking reelection and Mitchelle Drulis is a first-time Assembly candidate.
The district is a bit ungainly, covering at least parts of four counties – Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset. Dems have about an 18,000-vote registration advantage, but Republicans think this district is “in play.”
Michael Pappas, who ran unsuccessfully against Zwicker two years ago, and who is also a former congressman, is running again for the Senate.
He also was singled out by the governor as a “guy who wants to ban abortion rights with no exceptions.”
Pappas does not necessarily deny that. He said in a recent interview with NJSpotlight News that his previous views on the subject have not changed.
But then, as Republicans are wont to do, he said the Democrats are the true radicals on this issue, because they support abortion until the moment of birth.
Abortion rights supporters counter that abortions in the eighth or ninth month of pregnancy are statistically very rare and generally occur when the mother’s life is in danger or the fetus can’t survive.
Broadly speaking, this issue favors Democrats. New Jersey is clearly a pro-choice state.
Which is why Democrats are so eager to talk about abortion rights as we get closer – and closer – to the November election.
The discussion with Murphy was specifically about reproductive freedom.
While the state Legislature has codified the principles of Roe v. Wade into state law, Freiman said things can change quickly if Republicans gain control of the state. Of course, for that to happen, the GOP would need to win a majority in both houses this year and the governor’s seat in 2025.
That’s a tall order, but if nothing else, politics is about fearing what the “other guys” would do. So, support for abortion rights has emerged as the key issue for Democrats this year.
For another view of the state’s political landscape, we move to Morris County where on this same evening, Sen. Anthony M. Bucco, the Minority Leader, is addressing a GOP gathering in East Hanover.
He said it’s going to be a good election cycle for the GOP.
“What we are hearing on the streets is that people are angry, people are upset,” he said.
At what?
Bucco gave the answer: The radical policies of Murphy and the refusal of Democratic leaders to put a check on them. He referred to a projected 2035 ban on gas-powered vehicles and the state AG suing school districts regarding proposed policies on gay and transgender students.
As is the case at most Republican events, abortion was not mentioned.
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