From statehouses to the presidential campaign trail, Republicans are escalating their political attacks on transgender people – a reflection of what they see as a cultural fight their base is eager to wage.
Despite a poorer-than-expected showing in last fall’s midterm elections when various GOP candidates campaigned on anti-transgender rhetoric, many conservatives have only amplified their attacks this year.
And in recent days, those attacks have turned into new forms of mockery and political retribution, as Republicans seek to turn transgender rights into a flashpoint by seizing on social media controversies and exercising their rule-making power in statehouses where they hold large majorities.
In New Hampshire during a town hall last week, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and 2024 Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley mocked and misgendered Dylan Mulvaney, a transgender woman who received conservative backlash after she posted videos promoting Bud Light, Olay and Nike. Haley referred to Mulvaney as “a guy dressing up like a girl making fun of women.”
The next day, in the same state, former President Donald Trump referred to gender-affirming surgery for minors as “child sexual mutilation” and said he would seek to make such surgeries illegal if he returned to the White House.
A super PAC supporting Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ potential 2024 bid posted a video last week on social media mocking Disney, using clips of employees talking about their work to ensure LGBTQ character representation across the entertainment giant’s media offerings.
The attacks from presidential contenders came as transgender or nonbinary lawmakers were targeted in statehouses in Montana and Oklahoma – with GOP majorities there advancing a slew of bills that opponents described as harmful to transgender people.
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