In a baffling twist of political acrobatics, Republican Congressman Tom Kean Jr. of New Jersey praised the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold access to the abortion pill mifepristone, even as he maintains a convoluted stance on abortion rights.
This inconsistent position is not a precarious tightrope that Kean walks, balancing his professed pro-choice stance with a record that includes votes to shut down women’s health clinics, oppose protection of the right to choose . The Republican congressman is just lying about himself.
His anti-abortion position was explicitly presented on a website page that was supposed to be secretly accessible to MAGA extremists, but Kean evidently does not understand how the internet works. The deceitful politician ‘scrubbed’ that damning page from his website, but again, this only proved that Kean does not understand how the Internet works.
The page removed from its location at https://tomkean.com/kean-conservative/ said, “Tom is a fierce defender of the sanctity of life, fighting every step of the way to protect the unborn from egregious abortion laws proposed in New Jersey, and will continue to do so in Congress.”
In a 2022 forum hosted by the Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest, Kean claimed to support a “woman’s right to choose” — a statement that quickly unraveled under scrutiny.
Kean, who fumbled through a response on his abortion stance during his campaign in New Jersey’s most competitive congressional race, later revealed his support for prohibiting abortions after 20 weeks, with exceptions for incest, rape, or threats to the mother’s health.
This contradictory message left many voters perplexed, as Kean’s attempt to straddle both sides of the aisle only served to obscure his true intentions.
His rhetoric implied a willingness to force women to carry unwanted pregnancies to term, except under specific, narrowly defined circumstances. Audience members, seeking clarity, were met with more confusion as Kean doubled down on his ambiguous statements.
The Supreme Court’s decision, which Kean lauded, comes in the wake of anti-abortion doctors challenging the FDA’s regulation of mifepristone, a medication integral to over 60 percent of U.S. abortions.
Since the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022, such medications have become a battleground in the fight for reproductive rights. Kean’s assertion that the ruling rightly leaves reproductive health decisions to state legislatures reveals his willingness to defer to local authorities on issues of fundamental rights, despite his federal influence.
Kean’s purported pro-choice identity rings hollow in light of his actions.
He supported a nationwide abortion ban and voted against New Jersey’s “Freedom of Reproductive Choice Act,” which affirmed abortion rights in the state. Moreover, Kean has consistently backed legislation aimed at eroding women’s constitutional freedoms and restricting access to essential reproductive healthcare.
One such bill, H.R. 6918, endorsed by the extreme anti-choice National Right to Life Committee, seeks to divert federal funds to deceptive Crisis Pregnancy Centers (CPCs).
These centers, masquerading as legitimate healthcare providers, manipulate women with misinformation, aiming to prevent them from accessing safe and legal abortions. Kean’s support for this legislation further cements his allegiance to a far-right agenda that prioritizes ideological purity over women’s health and autonomy.
New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin has issued consumer alerts warning against CPCs, highlighting their deceptive practices and the dangers they pose.
These pregnancy centers often mislead women about the risks of abortion, promote unproven treatments like abortion pill “reversal,” and fail to provide comprehensive prenatal care. Despite these warnings, Kean joined Republicans to support legislation that would funnel taxpayer dollars into these harmful organizations.
Kean’s voting record further betrays his so-called pro-choice stance.
He voted to elect Mike Johnson as Speaker of the House, an extremist with a history of supporting a total national abortion ban and criminalizing doctors who provide reproductive care. This vote, among others, showcases Kean’s commitment to a partisan agenda that seeks to roll back decades of progress on women’s rights.
Kean’s alignment with far-right extremists and his support for misleading legislation like the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act, which misrepresents medical realities to further restrict abortion access, underscores his disingenuous stance.
Despite claiming to support a woman’s right to choose, Kean’s actions consistently undermine reproductive freedom.
In a state where the majority of voters support abortion access, Kean’s dangerous votes and deceptive rhetoric reveal a politician more concerned with appeasing his party’s base than representing the interests of his constituents.
As new polling shows historic levels of support for abortion rights, Kean’s duplicity becomes increasingly untenable. It’s time for New Jerseyans to see through the smokescreen and demand genuine representation that respects and protects women’s rights.