NIRH President Christian LoBue’s statement on the confirmation of Todd Blanche:
“Todd Blanche’s confirmation puts the Department of Justice in the hands of a man who has promised to use it to dismantle abortion access in every state. On a July call hosted by the White House, he said that he and the administration are putting policies in place to ensure states and other organizations cannot attack abortion bans, and that the Dobbs decision becomes permanent in every single state. That is exactly what anti-abortion politicians have wanted all along: complete and total restrictions on reproductive freedom, applied to every state, even against the will of the voters.
“As the Trump Administration attacks our rights, states are where we must defend and expand our freedoms. Blanche’s Department of Justice has threatened to restrict medication abortion care through the Comstock Act, and the people who would answer for that are patients, providers, and the friends and family who help someone get care. State policymakers must act now to enact and strengthen their shield laws that helpprotect those providers, patients, and helpers from out-of-state civil and criminal penalties, strengthen data privacy protections, and provide funding to help people continue to access abortion care.”