# RBG PAC **RBG PAC** was a late-2024 super PAC that used [[Ruth Bader Ginsburg]]'s initials and legacy to reassure abortion-rights voters about [[Donald Trump]]. It registered with the FEC on Oct. 16, 2024, three weeks before the election, and had exactly one funder: [[Elon Musk]], who gave **$20,500,000** through the "Elon Musk Revocable Trust" on Oct. 24, 2024. Who was paying wasn't public until the post-election filings in early December. ## What it did Its ads, mailers and texts stressed Trump's statement that he would not sign a national abortion ban and that he supports exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother, and compared that position to Ginsburg's. Per the FEC filings, nearly all of the money went to digital ads, mail and text messages. | FEC, 2024 cycle | Amount | |---|---| | Total receipts (all from Musk's trust) | $20,500,000 | | Independent expenditures | $20,476,000 | | Cash on hand, Dec. 31, 2024 | $8,851 | The FEC lists **May Mailman** as the committee's treasurer, and Wikipedia describes her as its head. Mailman was a first-term Trump White House aide who returned as a senior policy strategist from January to August 2025. See [[May Mailman]]. ## Why it matters here - **A borrowed brand with a hidden funder.** The PAC's name pointed toward the opposite side of the abortion fight, and its only money came from the largest Trump donor in the country. Voters saw the brand before the election and learned the funder only after it. - **Message segmentation.** [[America PAC]] ran the turnout operation for Trump's base. RBG PAC, with the same money behind it, targeted the voters most likely to be lost over *[[Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization]]*. The single-donor model let one man run both messages without the two appearing connected. - **It was Musk's second-largest 2024 vehicle**, behind America PAC. See [[Elon Musk Political Donations]]. ## See Also - [[Elon Musk Political Donations]] · [[America PAC]] - [[2024 Presidential Election]] - [[Super PACs]]