Republicans are using an unlikely figure in hopes of erasing Donald Trump’s long history of anti-abortion rhetoric: the late feminist icon Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Ginsburg, who died in 2020, was one of the most progressive justices on the high court and long championed abortion rights. Trump once advocated for criminal punishment for women who get abortions and repeatedly boasts about his role in repealing nearly 50 years of federal abortion protections. And yet the pro-Trump political action committee, RBG PAC, frames Ginsburg and Trump’s abortion views as one and the same.
“Why did Ruth Bader Ginsburg agree with Donald Trump’s position on abortion? Because RBG believed that the federal government shouldn’t dictate our abortion laws,” the website states in big letters. “Donald Trump also does not support a federal ban on abortion. On this issue, great minds think alike.”
Ginsburg famously criticized Trump, and her dying wish was for his successor to replace her seat on the high court.
Ginsburg believed in the abortion rights provided under Roe v. Wade, but she didn’t like how the ruling was constructed, wishing it had been framed around equal protection rather than privacy. The PAC’s website highlights past news coverage of Ginsburg’s misgivings about the Roe decision but only includes headlines to indicate she disagreed with the concept of federal abortion protections.
Meanwhile, the GOP nominee for president has continually bragged about appointing three Supreme Court justices who were critical in overturning Roe. One of the three is Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who replaced Ginsburg and voted with the majority to repeal abortion protections. Although Trump has waffled on whether he would support a national abortion ban, several of his longtime allies created Project 2025 –– a second-term policy plan that lays out the goal of enacting a federal abortion ban and threatening other reproductive rights.
The RBG PAC was only created last week and has brought in nearly $20 million from donors, according to Federal Election Commission filings. May Mailman, a former legal adviser for the Trump administration, is listed as the super PAC’s treasurer. Mailman has advocated against abortion protections for years and was a key opponent of Ohio’s pro-choice ballot initiative, which passed last year. She is currently the director of the Independent Women’s Law Center. HuffPost was not able to contact Mailman for a comment.
Paperwork to create the RBG PAC was filed Oct 16. — the last day of the last FEC filing period before Election Day. It was likely an intentional move so that the PAC does not have to disclose the breakdown of donors of that $20 million until after the election.
President Trump has been clear: He does not support a federal abortion ban.
“His position is my position. And that’s why I’m with Trump.” pic.twitter.com/Vaxrpz3Md2
— RBG PAC (@RBG_PAC) October 25, 2024
The website includes two digital ads that focus on abortion, including one featuring a woman who says she has never voted for Trump “but when he was president life was a lot better.” The woman adds that “freedom to choose is also important” to her and Trump does not support a national abortion ban.
Mailman shared the video on X (formerly Twitter) on Friday morning, describing the woman as a “suburban mom” who is backing Trump because he won’t enact a federal abortion ban, adding, “Women know the truth.”
