Americans United for Life President to Testify at Sotomayor Senate Judiciary Hearing

Americans United for Life President to Testify at Sotomayor Senate Judiciary
Hearing

WASHINGTON, July 10 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Americans United for Life (AUL)
announced today that its President & CEO Dr. Charmaine Yoest has been called
to testify at the confirmation hearings for Judge Sonia Sotomayor, which begin
on Monday, July 13.

AUL President Charmaine Yoest said "We are honored to have the opportunity to
testify before the Judiciary Committee about the nomination of Judge Sotomayor
to the highest court in the land. I am looking forward to sharing AUL's
extensive legal research about Judge Sotomayor's record. In particular, her
radical associations and judicial philosophy raises serious concerns in the
prolife community."

Dr. Yoest plans to focus her testimony on making the connection for the
senators and the American public between the positions taken by the Puerto
Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund (PRLDEF) during her tenure on the Board
and her judicial interventionist approach to the bench.

"Her PRLDEF record proves that she is an abortion advocate. That record
includes opposition to parental notification, opposition to informed consent,
opposition to bans on partial-birth abortion and support for taxpayer-funded
abortions. These positions are far outside the mainstream of American public
opinion," said Dr. Yoest.

The oldest national public policy organization dedicated to protecting and
defending life, Americans United for Life has garnered major media attention
for their comprehensive legal work in uncovering Judge Sotomayor's background
on abortion and how she is worse than Justice Souter on abortion. This
research is located at AUL's two informational Web sites:

-- Sotomayor411.com features in-depth background on the nominee's
record and her involvement with a radical pro-abortion group.
Sotomayor411.com also features a detailed comparison chart on why the
nominee would be worse than retiring Justice David Souter on the life
issues, a point that Yoest emphasized in her recent op-ed in the
Washington Times.

-- AskSotomayor.com spotlights the "Top Ten" questions senators
should pose to put her judicial philosophy into sharp focus. The
"Top Ten" questions on AskSotomayor.com, which Yoest presented
to the members of the Senate Judiciary Committee this week via a memo,
are tailored to clarify Sotomayor's beliefs about such vital issues
as the role of the Courts -- whether it is to make policy, as
Sotomayor
once suggested, or to interpret the Constitution -- and whether she
sees
abortion as a "fundamental right," as was argued by the Puerto
Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund while she was on its board.

About Americans United for Life
Americans United for Life (AUL) is a nonprofit, public-interest law and policy
organization whose vision is a nation in which everyone is welcomed in life
and protected in law. The first national pro-life organization in America,
AUL has been committed to defending human life through vigorous judicial,
legislative, and educational efforts at both the federal and state levels
since 1971. The Wall Street Journal has profiled AUL, and PBS'Frontline
program chronicled AUL's successful efforts in Mississippi.

SOURCE Americans United for Life

Heather Smith of Americans United for Life, +1-202-270-9962,
Heather.Smith@aul.org