With confirmation hearings for Judge Neil Gorsuch scheduled to begin next week, more than 50 abortion industry providers and activist groups have signed on to a letter urging pro-abortion Senators to oppose his nomination to the Supreme Court.

Politico is reporting on the letter, signed by the likes of Planned Parenthood, NARAL, Catholics for Choice, NOW, and the National Abortion Federation, and sent just days before the judge’s confirmation hearings are scheduled to begin.

“We implore senators to do everything necessary to block this nomination,” the letter reads. “Gorsuch has demonstrated he will go to extraordinary lengths to reach a result that would block women's access to basic reproductive healthcare.”

To bolster their case, the groups cite a variety of instances which they claim prove that Gorsuch will “put reproductive freedom in danger” should he be seated on the bench in the highest court of the land.

“In Planned Parenthood Association of Utah v. Herbert, Gorsuch sided with a politician who defunded Planned Parenthood in Utah, denying people access to STI tests, cancer screening, sex education, and other preventive care,” the letter states.

They also cite Gorsuch’s defense of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) that allowed employers such as Hobby Lobby and the Little Sisters of the Poor to block insurance coverage of birth control according to their religious beliefs.

“Gorsuch wrote a separate concurrence with a reading of RFRA that was extreme in how far it would apply the legislation and in the near absolute deference it would give claims of religious exercise,” the letter states.

They go on to add - with disdain – how the same law has since been used to challenge laws that “protect women, LGBTQ individuals and students from discrimination.”

In addition to criticizing several of the pro-life points he made in his book, The Future of Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia, they also take him to task for a National Review Online article in which he criticized “the Left” for advancing too many constitutional lawsuits and described marriage equality as part of the liberal social agenda.

In the article, Gorsuch wrote: “American liberals have become addicted to the courtroom . . . as the primary means of effecting their social agenda on everything from gay marriage to assisted suicide to the use of vouchers for private-school education.”

The letter concludes by reminding that “now, more than ever, the courts must be an independent check on the other branches of government to protect constitutional rights. . .” because “reproductive rights are under intense attack in Congress and in the states."

They add: “Together, Gorsuch’s rulings and writings show he will undermine, not protect, reproductive rights. This nominee is not an independent or consensus candidate and would put reproductive freedom in danger. We urge you to vigorously oppose the nomination of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court.”

Politico calls the letter a “signal” that liberal groups are ramping up efforts to derail Gorsuch’s nomination to the Supreme Court which seems to be gliding along after more than 70 meetings with lawmakers on the Hill.

They report that in one of those meetings, with Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), the issue of Roe v. Wade was raised. Menendez pressed Gorsuch on whether or not he considered the Roe v. Wade decision to be settled law. Gorsuch agreed that it was and indicated that he would adhere to that precedent.

However, Menendez cautioned that nominees can always change their mind on their views on particular issues, which is why he thinks it’s more important to know how Gorsuch will interpret the Constitution.

This warning will not be much of a comfort to proponents of abortion. It is well known that Gorsuch was chosen because he follows in the footsteps of his predecessor, the late Antonin Scalia, who was well-known for his originalist interpretation of the Constitution, and who repeatedly said there was no Constitutional right to abortion.

Confirmation hearings will begin Monday and a major floor battle is expected to take place before senators head home for the Easter break next month.

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