Trump’s First Judicial Nominees Advanced Attacks On Reproductive Rights, Pushed MAGA Agenda

Press Release / May 15, 2025

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 15, 2025

CONTACT: [email protected]

Washington, DC – Today, Demand Justice released a new factsheet highlighting the extreme records of President Trump’s first slate of Article III judicial nominees. 

As the factsheet reads, “all five nominees worked for state attorneys general who have used their offices to advance the MAGA agenda.” Several of them defended anti-abortion laws in their states, and one even worked to kneecap access to abortion after the citizens in their state passed a constitutional amendment protecting the right. These nominees could be confirmed to the federal bench as early as mid-July. 

On just abortion rights alone,  few key findings include:

  1. Whitney Hermandorfer, nominated to the Sixth Circuit, defended Tennessee’s near-total ban on abortion, which lacks exceptions for rape or incest.
  2. Joshua Divine, nominated to the Eastern and Western Districts of Missouri, has litigated against changes to Missouri’s anti-abortion laws as a result of the recent abortion rights amendment to Missouri’s constitution, adopted by ballot measure in 2024
  3. Joshua Divine led Missouri’s efforts with other Republican led attorneys generals’ offices in Kansas and Idaho seeking to vacate the FDA’s approval of the drug mifepristone. Maria Lanahan, nominated to the Eastern District of Missouri, also assisted in this case. 

You can find the full factsheet here. 

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