Conservative Christian power couple Sen. Josh Hawley and attorney Erin Hawley have announced new ventures aimed at using law firms, court decisions, state legislation and a nationwide ad campaign to restrict abortion, limit government overreach and more.
The Hawleys have launched a new nonprofit, The Love Life Initiative, that was “born out of the recognition that pro-life victories in the courtroom is not enough” to combat “well-financed pro-abortion initiatives” in the states.
Erin Hawley
Meanwhile, Erin Hawley announced she is joining Lex Politica, a Texas law firm funded by Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, as it takes a “bold approach” to challenging government power and seeks to “convert regulatory obstacles into growth opportunities.”
Erin Hawley will continue to work with Alliance Defending Freedom, the legal group co-founded by James Dobson that helped overturn Roe v Wade. As BNG reported Tuesday, ADF also is aiding Musk’s legal battle against European Union restrictions on hate speech and disinformation that impact his social media outlet X.
The Love Life Initiative recognizes that “pro-life victories in the courtroom is not enough” to “lovingly make the case to the American public of why life matters and is worth defending.” Meanwhile, Erin Hawley told The Federalist that today’s conservative-leaning Supreme court helps make the present “a real time of opportunity for conservative lawyers on a wide variety of issues.”
Love Life says courtroom victories are not enough to abolish abortion because Democrats “have drowned out the pro-life narrative and overwhelmed the pro-life agenda” through millions spent on “infrastructure, advocacy and advertising.”
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) gestures toward a crowd of supporters of President Donald Trump gathered outside the U.S. Capitol to protest the certification of President-elect Joe Biden’s electoral college victory Jan. 6, 2021, at the US Capitol in Washington, DC. Some demonstrators later breached security and stormed the Capitol. (Francis Chung/E&E News and Politico via AP Images)
The Hawleys say Love Life is “aimed less at litigation than at reshaping public opinion and state policy from the ground up.” The group will invest in a nationwide anti-abortion advertising campaign while aiding anti-abortion in states and battling state laws expanding abortion access.
“We live in a world that doesn’t prioritize or see the God-given value of life,” they said. “Suicide rates are sky high, euthanasia is gaining traction worldwide, and people are losing their lives to overdose like never before — it’s no wonder the precious lives of the unborn are so trivialized. We want to change that.”
It’s not clear how the group plans to reduce suicides or overdoses.
Love Life says it is fighting a “dangerous new trend” of increasing support for abortion rights that has arisen following the Supreme Court’s Dobbs ruling reversing Roe and state initiatives to abolish abortion.
“At the time of the Dobbs ruling, Americans were roughly split on the issue— 49% of Americans identified as pro-choice and 46% as pro-life,” says Love Life. “What was a 3-point gap has since widened into a 14-point deficit. Today, 53% identify as pro-choice, while only 39% identify as pro-life.
“The polling is reflected in referendums across the country, where well-financed pro-abortion initiatives have passed in 11 states, and pro-life initiatives have been defeated in two more — even in states where Republicans are winning on the ballot.”
In reality, most research shows the gap is due to the extreme nature of the court overturning Roe and conservatives in Republican-led states seeking to limit access to all forms of abortion.
Lex Politica was founded in January by attorney Chris Gober, who helped Musk launch his super PAC, America PAC, which spent more than $200 million to reelect Donald Trump in 2024.
Erin Hawley joined the firm to help it empower conservative legal groups in their battles again liberals. “Anyone who disagrees with leftists, including conservative state legislatures, has to contend with this massive legal power disparity,” said The Federalist.
She described the law firm’s strategy as “trying to step into that void and say, ‘We’ll come along Republican attorney generals, we’ll come along Republican governors and support those policies.’”
Josh Hawley, who was reelected to a second Senate term representing Missouri in 2024, interned with The Heritage Foundation and worked Becket Fund for Religious Liberty and ADF’s Blackstone Legal Fellowship.
He is a Trump loyalist who was the first senator to oppose certifying Joe Biden’s 2020 electoral victory. Conservative columnist George Will said Hawley’s behavior earned him “the scarlet S of a seditionist.” Sen. Mitt Romney said Hawley was “complicit in an unprecedented attack against our democracy.”
A month later, Hawley claimed criticism of his behavior was persecution for his Christian faith: “It’s an honor to be able to stand for the Lord,” he told Focus CEO Jim Daly. “It’s an honor when you’re criticized for your beliefs, when you’re criticized for being faithful.”
He later voted against an independent commission to investigate the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol and was the only senator to oppose all but one of Biden’s cabinet nominees.
Before serving in the Senate, Hawley was Missouri’s attorney general. He campaigned for the position by criticizing “ladder-climbing politicians” but was accused of climbing the ladder himself when he launched a Senate run less than a year after he was sworn in. His 2018 Senate campaign violated open records laws.
He’s the author of books, including 2023’s Manhood: The Masculine Virtues America Needs, and a 2024 article for First Things titled “Our Christian Nation.”
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