Statement of Janet Benshoof, President of the Center for Reproductive Rights:

"Nominating John Ashcroft for Attorney General is like letting the fox guard the chicken house. It demonstrates the deceptive tactics of President-Elect Bush, who buried his anti-choice beliefs during the campaign to appear moderate to the pro-choice majority of Americans.

"Speaking as an American citizen, an advocate for women's human rights, and an attorney, I believe that John Ashcroft's disregard for the rule of law and his extreme anti-woman ideology makes him an unfit candidate to lead the Department of Justice. It is inappropriate for the nation's top law officer to be opposed to the rights of half the nation's population, yet Ashcroft's hostility to women's reproductive rights is fierce.

"Ashcroft's activist approach to undermining constitutional principles should disqualify him from holding the office of Attorney General. Throughout his career, Ashcroft has been a leading proponent of measures that would eliminate altogether the right of women to make decisions about their reproductive health. He is on record in the U.S. Senate as opposing the United States Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade. He is a major architect of the legal assaults on Roe, which has been weakened by challenges from Missouri during Ashcroft's tenure both as state Attorney General and Governor. He vigorously objects to all abortions, even for women who have been raped or are the victims of incest. He does not believe women should have access to the safest methods of abortion to protect their health, and remains a leading proponent of abortion bans that have been found unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. He even opposes some of the most effective methods of birth control.

"As Attorney General, Ashcroft would impose an anti-choice litmus test for appointments to the federal bench, including the U.S. Supreme Court. A hero to extreme, fringe organizations opposed to abortion, Ashcroft is unlikely to allocate Justice Department resources to defend the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE), a federal law to prosecute those who attack and threaten reproductive health clinics. Without vigorous enforcement of this federal law, and a zero tolerance approach to domestic terrorism at clinics, the Center for Reproductive Rights fears that our clients, abortion providers and their patients, will again be subjected to unacceptable and potentially lethal consequences for performing a safe and legal medical procedure.

"The rule of law does not temper his extreme ideological opposition to women's reproductive autonomy, rendering John Ashcroft unfit to hold the keys to the Department of Justice. The Center for Reproductive Rights urges the Senate to reject his nomination."