In a Twitter thread published on Sunday, George Conway , a vocal critic of President Donald Trump , voiced support for Judge Amy Coney Barrett.
Barrett was chosen by Trump to replace Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who passed away on Friday. Democrats fear that her appointment could lead to the overturning of Roe v. Wade , which would mark the end of abortion rights in the U.S.
Conway tried to dismiss these concerns, pointing to statements Barrett has made in the past. In the same thread, he responded to questions from skeptical fans and followers, describing Barrett as “eminently qualified to serve on the Supreme Court.” He also defended her involvement in the infamous Bush v. Gore case, which resulted in Republican George W. Bush winning the presidency over Democrat Al Gore.
“There were literally hundreds of lawyers involved in litigating the 2000 election on both sides,” Conway wrote.
Journalists, commentators and other media figures were quick to accuse Conway — who claims to be an ardent opponent of Trump and his agenda — of hypocrisy.
“It’s so fun watching the Resistance group think cabal turning on the Never Trumpers who conned them 1-by-1,” progressive journalist Jordan Chariton of Status Coup tweeted .
In a tweet , writer Cheri Jacobus drew parallels between Conway’s behavior now and during the confirmation hearings for Brett Kavanaugh, suggesting that the lawyer opportunistically claimed to be opposed to Trump to get other reluctant conservatives to support his judges.
“George Conway became NeverTrump weeks before Kennedy announced his retirement, to infiltrate the group to get NeverTrump support for his pal, Kavanaugh,” Jacobus wrote.
“Now he’s doing it to install Barrett… he conned you,” she stressed.
Democratic operative Meagan Hatcher-Mays accused Conway of trying to “rehabilitate” Barrett’s position on abortion.
“He is lying about the impact Barrett would have on the court. You are not required to fall for it,” she tweeted .
Healthcare advocate Kendall Brown expressed similar sentiments.
George Conway is here to remind you that The Lincoln Project Republicans want to control women’s bodies too—they’ll just revert back to the old GOP tactic of whittling away at clinic access for poor women to do it.
They. Aren’t. Your. Friends. https://t.co/LxgrDHvjw7
— Kendall Brown (@kendallybrown) September 27, 2020
Conway is the husband of senior White House adviser Kellyanne Conway.
As Brown pointed out, he is also a member of the conservative super PAC, The Lincoln Project, which is one of the few Republican organizations in D.C. that claims to be opposed to the president and his agenda.
Most recently, the group released an advertisement slamming South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham for supporting Barrett’s nomination.
In 2016 — like virtually all Republican lawmakers — Graham opposed Judge Merrick Garland’s nomination, saying that then-President Barack Obama was wrong to push for an appointment in an election year. Now that Trump is in a similar situation, Graham is fully on board with filling the vacancy left by Ginsburg as quickly as possible.
