Patterson bashes Van Drew on ERA vote

GOP congressional candidate Robert Patterson slammed Democrat-turned-Republican Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-Dennis) today for joining with House Democrats to vote for a measure that repeals the Equal Rights Amendment ratification deadline.

Van Drew had co-sponsored the ERA extension resolution in September while he was still a Democratic congressman.  He was one of four House Republicans to buck the GOP leadership on the vote.

“It should come as no surprise that liberal Jeff Van Drew sided with Nancy Pelosi and AOC (Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez) in voting for the liberal ERA,” said Patterson, a former Trump administration official. “After all, Cong(ressman)  Van Drew calls himself ‘unequivocally pro-choice,’ has a 100% rating from Planned Parenthood, and boasted about voting to fund Planned Parenthood with taxpayer dollars 16 times.”

Patterson is challenging Van Drew in the June 2 Republican primary.   He has a head-to-head race against the party switching freshman congressman after two other GOP candidates dropped out of the race.

“It’s clear that Cong(ressman) Van Drew is a Republican In Name Only and will continue to side with liberals on key votes,” Patterson said. “South Jersey Republicans deserve a conservative choice this June, and I intend to give it to them.”

In remarks before the vote, House Minority Whip Steve Scalise said that the vote isn’t about equal rights for women.

“It’s about eliminating federal and state life protections and ushering in an era of taxpayer funding of abortion,” he said.

Van Drew assembled a “strongly and unequivocally pro-choice” record during his time in the New Jersey Legislature.