As anti-abortion activists gathered outside the U.S. Supreme Court on June 24, 2025, to mark the third anniversary of the overturning of Roe v. Wade, abortion rights advocates are sounding alarms about what they describe as a quiet but deeply consequential transformation of the federal judiciary under former President Donald Trump.
A review by the Associated Press reveals that several of Trump’s federal court nominees hold strong anti-abortion views, have ties to anti-abortion organizations, or have defended strict abortion restrictions in court. While Trump himself has adopted a more hands-off approach publicly—saying abortion laws should be left to the states—the judges he’s nominating for lifetime appointments could influence national abortion policy for decades to come.
Some of the nominees have already played significant roles in court cases with national implications, including litigation over access to medication abortion. One nominee from Missouri, for example, inaccurately claimed in a lawsuit that the abortion pill mifepristone “starves the baby to death in the womb.” Others have used language like “barbaric practice” or described themselves as a “zealot” for the anti-abortion cause.
Legal scholars warn that these appointments could reshape abortion rights in the U.S. without the public debate or scrutiny that typically surrounds legislation. Bernadette Meyler, a constitutional law professor at Stanford University, explained that using the courts in this way allows for major changes to abortion access without triggering widespread backlash. “It’s a way to cover up a little bit what is happening in the abortion sphere compared to legislation or executive orders,” she said.
The White House defended the judicial picks, calling them aligned with Trump’s promises to voters. “Every nominee of the President represents his promises to the American people,” said spokesperson Harrison Fields. “President Trump’s commonsense approach allows states to decide, supports the sanctity of human life, and prevents taxpayer funding of abortion.”
Trump’s messaging on abortion has shifted repeatedly. He once backed a federal ban after 20 weeks and later floated the idea of a 15-week ban. During his 2024 campaign, however, he focused on economic and immigration issues, mostly sidestepping abortion while taking credit for the Supreme Court appointments that overturned Roe v. Wade.
Still, anti-abortion groups are hopeful. “We look forward to four more years of nominees cut from that mold,” said Katie Glenn Daniel of SBA Pro-Life America.
On the other hand, abortion rights advocates see a dangerous trend. “Trump has gotten away with distancing himself from abortion,” said Mini Timmaraju, president of Reproductive Freedom for All. “But he’s quietly stacking the judiciary with anti-abortion extremists.”
This judicial reshaping may not draw headlines like a new law or executive order, but its effects could be just as powerful—and far more enduring.