Senate should reject all-or-nothing trans agenda
The somber decorum of the Missouri Senate has little in common with the boisterous, rainbow-flag-waving crowd at City Hall.
Both groups, however, share a preoccupation with transgender individuals. The Democratic Party LGBTQ+ Caucus led a demonstration last weekend outside St. Joseph's City Hall where protesters waved signs that read, “Trans Lives Matter” and “Trans Equality.”
Just two days earlier, the Senate voted to enact a permanent ban on transgender athletes playing high school and college sports. The Senate also removed the expiration date on a law prohibiting transgender surgery and hormone therapy on minors, meaning Missouri’s existing ban on “gender-affirming care” becomes permanent if the bill gains House approval.
It would seem Missouri experienced both sides of the coin: permanent restrictions in the Senate and protests at what was described as “Zero Discrimination Day.”
Maybe they were both right. Missourians should reject discrimination based on race, religion, gender and sexual orientation. At the same time, Missourians shouldn’t be labeled “anti-trans” for refusing to accept every aspect of the LGBTQ+ agenda.
If 2024 showed us anything, it’s that voters – especially swing voters who determine national elections -- absolutely despised this all-or-nothing approach. Voters see something that Democrats refuse to accept: nuance and room for compromise.
Adults should be able to do what they want to do and still fully participate in civil society – including housing, employment and military service.
But what about minors? Here is where Democrats, in their fealty to interest groups, are out of touch with common sense and the electorate at large.
In general, politicians shouldn’t be making medical decisions, but Missouri Republicans are right to make an exception when it comes to permanent physical changes to a minor’s body.
With the question of transgender women competing in sports, Democrats and their media supporters seem to have forgotten about the rights of girls and women who want a fair chance to participate and compete. Sen. Tony Luetkemeyer, a Republican who represents Buchanan County, describes the Senate restrictions on transgender athletes in girls’ sports as a victory of fair play over identity politics.
“The Missouri GOP will always fight to protect vulnerable children and the rights of women athletes to compete on an even playing field,” he said on Facebook.
If you don’t believe the Senate majority floor leader, ask Martina Navratilova -- a pioneer of women’s athletics and gay rights.
“I hate that Democrats totally failed women and girls on this very clear issue of women’s sports being for females only,” she said recently on X.
For the record, there’s not a lot of pro-Trump stuff on Martina’s X account. She gets it. Why doesn’t everyone else?
It would be interesting to ask those protesters in St. Joseph what, if anything, they would be willing to compromise on. The answer, most likely, would be nothing.
Not only is this politically tone deaf, it’s lacking in common sense. The ability to play on a sports team is now confused right with “rights” and “discrimination,” leading to a bizarre mash-up of identity politics and “everybody-gets-a-trophy” coddling in the latest installment of the culture wars.
