New Jersey Legislature, Governor Christie Fight Over Funds to Abortion Centers
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
June 29, 2010
Trenton, NJ (LifeNews.com) — When Governor Chris Christie ran for office last year, he campaigned on a pro-life platform and he is making good on his promise to advocate life. At present, he is skirmishing with Democrats in the state legislature over the millions in taxpayer funds the state sends abortion centers for family planning.
Although the money doesn’t directly fund abortions, Christie thinks there’s little reason to send the abortion centers $7.5 million when the state currently faces an $11 billion deficit.
Christie’s state budget removed the millions in funding for the abortion businesses but Democrats, last Thursday, voted to restore the health and family planning services via a supplemental funding bill. The Democrat-controlled Assembly and Senate chambers both set up battles with the governor by passing the bill restoring the funds.
The money goes to 58 family planning clinics but Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest abortion chain, runs 29 of the facilities.
Assemblyman Jay Webber, a Republican, last week surprised his colleagues by reading a Planned Parenthood brochure advocating teenage sexual relations and he disputed the contention that the money saves lives.
"It’s wrong to put a price tag on children. Children are our future. We want more children, not less,” he said.
Christie has been resolute in his decision to cut the funds.
"I don’t believe that is a priority in a budget where you have to cut $11 billion," the governor said, according to the Star-Ledger newspaper. "I believe that women have the opportunity to access health care all across New Jersey. Family planning has nothing to do with mammograms, and don’t put the two of them together."
Backers of cutting the family planning funding have also referenced statistics from the pro-abortion Guttmacher Institute, a former Planned Parenthood affiliate. Its statistics show New Jersey was in the top ten for teen birthrates and came in second place for the highest abortion rate, despite the millions sent to Planned Parenthood for family planning.
Now, Christie has signed the state budget and must decided what to do about the supplemental. He has 45 days to determine whether he wants to sign or veto the measure and has declined to say what he will do, according to a Business Week report.
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