Some Republicans are officially moving to give Rep.-elect Sarah McBride an unwelcome arrival to the House.
Rep. Nancy Mace introduced a resolution to ban trangender women from using the women’s restroom in the Capitol and any of the House office buildings. The South Carolina Republican told reporters that she was specifically introducing the bill because of McBride — who is set to be the first openly trans member of Congress — though it would likely impact any transgender person who works at the Capitol.
McBride “does not get a say in this at all,” Mace said. “She was born a biological male, she should use the men’s restroom. That’s how it should work.”
When asked about the resolution, which was first reported by Fox News, Speaker Mike Johnson said “we’re working on the issue,” but then added that he didn’t “have anything to say about it.”
In a statement to NOTUS, McBride called the resolution “a blatant attempt from far right-wing extremists to distract from the fact they have no real solutions to what Americans are facing.”
“We should be focused on bringing down the cost of housing, health care, and child care, not manufacturing culture wars. Delawareans sent me here to make the American dream more affordable and accessible and that’s what I’m focused on,” McBride added.
Mace told reporters that she had already received positive feedback from House Republicans who want to cosponsor the resolution. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has previously misgendered McBride, told NOTUS she’d “100%” back the bill.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries refused to respond to the resolution, specifically saying that he had not seen it. But other members of the Democratic caucus immediately railed against Mace.
“For Nancy Mace to specifically target an individual member of Congress is really horrible. I mean, … this is not just bigotry, it’s just plain bullying,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said. “[McBride] deserves to be treated like anybody else and to be making this about her identity when she really just wants to be here and be a serious legislator, … She wants to focus on her job, and she should be able to focus on her job and not on her colleagues harassing her.”
Rep. Greg Casar, who is likely to become the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, which McBride recently joined, said McBride is “real tough and she’s seen worse from more embarrassing people.”
Rep. Joe Morelle, ranking member of the House Administration Committee, which is in charge of addressing members’ security, reiterated that focusing on restrooms is not “a priority” and Mace “should focus on other things.”
“[McBride] is a woman. She should use the ladies’ room,” Morelle added. “That’s what I think.”
Mace’s resolution says that a bathroom ban would be enforced by the House sergeant-at-arms.
“Is that what we want the sergeant-at-arms to be doing when we’ve had an attack on the freaking Capitol? That they should be policing who’s using the bathroom?” said Democratic Rep. Becca Balint, a co-chair of the Congressional Equality Caucus. “The cruelty is the point. … This is clearly an attack on an incoming colleague and if [Republicans] spent even half the time that they spent scapegoating people, if they spent half the time trying to get something done here, then we would actually be able to serve our constituents.”
—
Oriana González is a reporter at NOTUS.