Nicole Shanahan, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s vice presidential running mate, was asked to weigh in on the Arizona Supreme Court decision to uphold a 123-year-old law that restricts abortion except in cases of the life of the mother. A billionaire, Shanahan's funding and research are being poured into the Bia-Echo Foundation, which focuses on reproductive longevity. When she was married to Google co-founder Sergey Brin, Shanahan struggled with infertility and was told she was an "impossible" candidate for invitro-fertilization. 

She eventually conceived naturally, but this sparked her exploration into alternative methods for women to conceive even past the prime childbearing years. 

And since then she’s been devoted to Bia-Echo, the private fund she founded that focuses on three key areas: reproductive longevity and equality; criminal justice reform; and preserving a healthy and livable planet. Shanahan’s interest in reproductive longevity and equality ties to her own personal struggles trying to get pregnant. “I did a report on longevity science because as a scientific field of research it’s really big, and has been popular for the better half of the last 10 years,” she explains. “And what’s never been included in the definition of longevity is women’s reproduction.” She continues, “I was sitting in the meeting where the head of the National Academy of Medicine said we need to think outside the box and redefine how science approaches aging. We should never take anything at face value. And I thought, ‘Wait a second, am I taking this whole women go infertile at age 35 at face value? Oh my God, I am.’ It was in that moment I knew we had to do something about this.”

Shanahan has also spoken out against invitro-fertilization, particularly from the perspective of corporate control of the product and the exploitation of mothers.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s running mate has been a harsh critic of in vitro fertilization, while funding alternative research on extending women’s reproductive years.

Nicole Shanahan has for years denounced IVF — calling it “one of the biggest lies that’s being told about women’s health today.”

When POLITICO requested she clarify these past statements, Shanahan did so even more cogently.

“I’ve spent the past five years funding science to understand the environmental factors that impact women’s reproductive health because these have gone largely ignored,” Shanahan said. “IVF is a very expensive for-profit business, and many of these clinics are owned by private equity firms that are not invested in the underlying health of women. What I care about is informed consent, and not letting corporations take advantage of us.”

And in a personal essay for People Magazine in 2022, in which she detailed her split from her ex-husband and Google co-founder Sergey Brin, she said, “I believe IVF is sold irresponsibly, and in my own experience with natural childbirth has led me to understand that the fertility industry is deeply flawed.”

Kennedy has been wishy-washy in his comments on abortion, saying at the 2023 Iowa State Fair that he would support a federal ban on abortion after three months. A statement his campaign quickly walked back.

“Mr. Kennedy’s position on abortion is that it is always the woman’s right to choose. He does not support legislation banning abortion,” the campaign said in a statement. 

So, Shanahan could have spoken cogently and precisely in the abortion conversation. Instead, she chose to post a long, rambling missive on X. 

People are asking about my views on abortion.

I will speak personally. As a mom, and a person with a womb, I don't like the feeling of anyone having control over my body. It is coercive. It is wrong. But, I am also a woman that would not feel right terminating a viable life… pic.twitter.com/QqmkkzZJkO

— Nicole Shanahan (@NicoleShanahan) April 9, 2024

People are asking about my views on abortion. I will speak personally. As a mom, and a person with a womb, I don't like the feeling of anyone having control over my body. It is coercive. It is wrong. But, I am also a woman that would not feel right terminating a viable life living inside of me, especially if I am both healthy and that baby is healthy. I can hold both beliefs, as someone who believes in the sacredness of life, simultaneously.  

She can, but as a woman who is vying to be the Vice President of the United States, holding beliefs and dictating policy are two separate things, and require a more definitive response.

There are a number of extenuating circumstances that would lead me to considering terminating a pregnancy. Those include: my health, the health of the baby, and considerations of what happens to that baby if that baby is being born into a situation that cannot sustain a good and healthy life. In the situation of economic considerations, I support bringing babies into the world through community support of BOTH mother and baby. I think all mothers carrying a healthy baby want what is best for their baby. Let's help them do just that.  

In Shanahan's beloved Oakland, they have led the charge to restrict and shut down the agencies in the state that seek to offer community support to women with unexpected pregnancies. One such pregnancy resource center spoke to KPBS on condition of anonymity to describe exactly what they do, and why these attacks on them are unfounded, and frankly calculated.

KPBS interviewed a woman who runs a center in San Diego County. She did not want her name or the name of her facility used out of fear that she would be targeted. She also made a point of saying that her organization is not a crisis pregnancy center.

 “We’re a medical clinic that offers a variety of services,” she said. “A crisis pregnancy center is a very antiquated term and now it’s a derogatory term.”

She said when a pregnant woman enters her center, the goal is to confirm her condition, determine how far along she is and make sure her pregnancy is viable.

"She is respected and treated with dignity,” the woman said. “There is nothing deceptive about what we do.”

Yet, Shanahan has given large sums of money to politicians like Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Silicon Valley), and organizations like TOP PAC who are intent on promoting abortion-on-demand without exceptions, as well as demonizing pregnancy resource centers that want to give women all the options and not just the option of terminating her pregnancy.

Abortion legislation should NOT be left to states. AZ’s Supreme Court just showed us why Trump is so wrong, rolling back women’s rights to 1856 — 54 years before they won the right to vote. https://t.co/PYWNWCb7FE

— Ro Khanna (@RoKhanna) April 9, 2024

After Roe was overturned in June of 2022, California Attorney General Rob Bonta has made it a goal to undermine these resource centers, claiming they spread misinformation.

In response to Bonta’s criticism of crisis pregnancy centers, the woman wanted to know why he was so passionate about the issue. And she had another question for the attorney general:

“Have you ever sat across from that woman making that decision and hearing her why, hearing her stress, hearing all the reasons that she is undecided about this pregnancy?,” she asked. “And really listening to it and not making that decision for her, but hearing the outside influences that are influencing her and making your decision based on that?"

She said her staff does not have an agenda beyond caring for the people who come to them. They educate women on the different forms of abortion, what they should ask their doctors and the physical and emotional after-effects of terminating a pregnancy.

Her organization does not offer abortions or abortion referrals because they are not within “its scope,” she said.

A 2018 U.S. SCOTUS decision upheld the rights of California pregnancy resource centers to provide this care without having to offer abortion referrals and other baby-killing services. Yet the very politicians Shanahan financially supports continue to demonize the very places that actually have conversations and care about women and their present and future fertility. 

It's a bit of a disconnect, frankly. Shanahan could have spoken out in support of these organizations that exemplify what she claims to be promoting, and encourage that California, which is one of the most open states in terms of abortion access, include these organizations in the "conversations" Shanahan likes to espouse.

Let's center the conversation and bring it back to the people.  Bobby and I are dedicated to bringing to light solutions in the best interest of mother and baby.   

Here is a picture of me and my daughter in the moments before leaving the hospital. I was saying a prayer to God to protect her and give her strength to navigate this world.

Instead, Shanahan metaphorically split the baby, neither furthering the conversation nor clarifying her position on life or abortion access. When you listen to Shanahan's speech after Kennedy announced her as his running mate, you'll note that she speaks strongly about mental health. 

You can hear the heartbreak in her voice as she discusses her father, who was bipolar. She is quite firm about autism education and resources, and that we need to talk about vaccine injury. Yet on the subject that is clearly defining how progressives like her will vote in 2024, she presents this weak sauce song and dance. 

However, her donations to staunch advocates of abortion like Khanna, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and President Joe Biden speak louder than her words or any X post she puts up.

Nicole has every right to be on the ticket. My point to her both publicly and privately has been that RFK’s ticket threatens the very issues she cares about --such as climate and abortion rights and to welcome her into the Democratic Party. https://t.co/MDE15wONHU pic.twitter.com/tPzsU4IZWH

— Ro Khanna (@RoKhanna) April 9, 2024