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Abortion rights advocates called out Texas Governor Greg Abbott after he hit out against an FBI raid of Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate.
The FBI search on Monday appeared to be part of an investigation into whether the former president took classified records from the White House to his Florida residence, according to reports.
Trump disclosed the raid in a lengthy statement, calling it a weaponization of the justice system and an effort to keep him from running for a second term in 2024.
Abbott, a Republican running for re-election, slammed the raid as "next-level Nixonian."
"Never before has the country seen an Administration go to such extent to use the levers of government to target a former President and political rival," he wrote. "This weaponizes power to squelch dissent. Such abuses must have limits."
His comments prompted the ire of the Mothers Against Greg Abbott PAC, which describes itself as a "diverse group of Texans who are a mix of Democrats, Moderate Republicans and Independents" working to oust Abbott from office for his anti-abortion stance among other reasons.
"Try being a woman in Texas," the group wrote on its Twitter account in response.
"Never before has an Administration gone to such an extent to use the levers of government to target Texas women and doctors. This weaponizes power for TxGOP to squelch dissent. Such abuses have limits."
Try being a woman in Texas.
— Mothers Against Greg Abbott PAC (@MomsAGAbbott) August 9, 2022
Never before has an Administration gone to such an extent to use the levers of government to target Texas women and doctors.
This weaponizes power for TxGOP to squelch dissent.
Such abuses have limits.
?Fuck around and find out on Nov 8? https://t.co/IpCQiBE7Po
Abbott and the Texas GOP "complain about government overreach and then go and wield their powers into the private lives of Texans," Nancy Thompson, the founder of the Mothers Against Greg Abbott PAC, told Newsweek.
"They continually believe that rules don't apply to them. They are more than happy to impose their personal beliefs on all Texans. Women have lost their rights over their own bodily autonomy under the TX GOP and Texas women have not forgotten. We can still vote and we are showing up."
The group recently released a satirical ad attacking Abbott's anti-abortion stance.
Newsweek has reached out to Abbott's office for comment.
Abbott signed Senate Bill 8 into law in 2021, then the most restrictive abortion law in the country
The law went into effect in September 2021, banning abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy and empowering citizens to file civil lawsuits against abortion providers or anyone who helps a woman obtain an abortion illegally in Texas.
Abbott cheered the Supreme Court's decision overturning Roe v. Wade in late June, which prompted the Texas Supreme Court to allow a 1925 law banning abortion to take effect. That law does not permit criminal prosecution but exposes abortion providers to lawsuits and civil penalties.
Roe's fall also put into motion a "trigger" law that the Texas legislature passed in 2021.
That law, set to take effect on August 25, increases the penalties for performing an abortion up to life in prison. It bans abortion from the moment of fertilization except when a mother's life is in danger or if she is at risk of "substantial impairment of a major bodily function."
Update 8/9/22, 10:50 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with a comment from Nancy Thompson.
About the writer
Khaleda Rahman is Newsweek's National Correspondent based in London, UK. Her focus is reporting on education and national news. Khaleda ... Read more