McBride: Trump administration using transgender people 'as a pawn'

Rep. Sarah McBride (D-Del.), the first openly transgender person elected to Congress, on Friday condemned recent executive orders issued by President Trump that target transgender rights and accused the administration of using transgender Americans to further a political agenda.

Trump, since he first took office on Jan. 20, has signed a bevy of executive orders to roll back transgender rights and certain federal nondiscrimination protections for LGBTQ people. An order issued during his first hours in office declared the government recognizes only two sexes, male and female, and broadly prevents federal dollars from being spent on what Trump and his administration call “gender ideology.”

Federal prison officials, in compliance with the order, had attempted to move an incarcerated transgender woman to a men’s facility and deny her access to gender-affirming care before a Massachusetts judge stepped in to block them.

The Office of Personnel Management instructed federal agency heads this week to bar trans employees from using restrooms that match their gender identity and place workers whose job descriptions involve “promoting gender ideology” on administrative leave because of the order.

Three more executive orders signed this week target schools that teach “radical gender ideology,” transgender people serving openly in the military, and access to gender-affirming care for minors. Hospital systems in states across the country said they are pausing treatment for trans youth over fear the Trump administration could take away their funding.

“Since January 20th, I've heard from transgender constituents and their families who are living in fear of the Trump Administration's relentless attacks on them,” McBride said Friday in a lengthy statement on the social platform X.

“Many Americans have good faith questions about topics regarding trans people, but this administration's sweeping and malicious policies exploit those questions for political purposes,” McBride said. “I will not let my trans constituents — or any Delawarean — be used as a pawn in the Trump Administration's efforts to purge patriots from federal service and gut lifesaving programs all in pursuit of lining the pockets of the uber wealthy. And I will continue to pull back the curtain on this administration's blatant effort to divide this nation at the expense of working people.”

“Each time the Trump administration attacks a small vulnerable community, the ripple effects of hate echo across our society,” she added. “In Delaware, we have the capacity to be the antidote to this hate — where we see one another as neighbors and treat one another with respect.”

McBride’s comments mark a shift in tone for the first-term lawmaker, who has tended to stay above the fray, characterizing attacks on transgender rights — and her, personally — as “an effort to distract” from issues such as lowering costs of health care and groceries.

In November, after Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) implemented a new policy barring transgender people from facilities that best align with their gender identity at the Capitol, McBride said she would comply. “I’m not here to fight about bathrooms,” she said.

In a recent interview with MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell, McBride said the Trump administration’s targeting of transgender people is part of “a strategy of misdirection.”

“This is a strategy as old as time,” she said. “Right-wing leaders will often target vulnerable and misunderstood communities in order to distract from what they’re doing that is deeply unpopular with the American people.”

Updated at 6:52 p.m. EST

Topics

Federal judge blocks Trump administration from transferring transgender inmate

A judge has temporarily blocked federal prison officials from transferring a trans woman to a men’s facility and denying her access to gender-affirming care in accordance with an executive order ...
NBC News - 14h
Trump executive order aims to restrict transgender care access for people under 19

President Donald Trump has signed an executive order to restrict gender-affirming care for people under the age of 19.
ABC News - 2d
Trump signs executive order barring transgender people from military service

President Donald Trump signed executive orders that aim to restrict transgender people’s military service and crack down on DEI initiatives in the military.
NBC News - 3d
Trump Moves Toward Pushing Openly Transgender People Out of Military

The president also ordered the Pentagon to end diversity programs, reinstate many service members dismissed for refusing the coronavirus vaccine and create a new missile defense system.
The New York Times - 3d
Trump to sign executive order banning transgender people from military service

President Trump is expected to sign an executive order Monday barring transgender people from serving openly in the military, part of a broader effort to crack down on what his administration has ...
The Hill - 4d
New Trump administration brings changes to US health agencies

President Donald Trump's first week in office came with big changes to U.S. health agencies, including the pausing of all external communications and banning travel.
ABC News - Jan. 24
Trump administration bans non-US flags from being flown at embassies

The policy stands in contrast to instances during the Biden administration when gay pride and Black Lives Matter flags were flown. The US Department of State has banned consular posts from flying ...
The Guardian - Jan. 23
Transgender Rep. Sarah McBride reacts to Trump gender policy

Rep. Sarah McBride, D-Del., the first openly transgender member of Congress, said President Trump's new policy that the government will only recognize two genders raises privacy concerns. WCAU's ...
NBC News - Jan. 22
Trump administration cancels travel for refugees approved to resettle in US

Thousands of refugees now stranded around the globe after undergoing lengthy process to be permitted to come to US. US politics live – latest updates Trump to deploy troops to US-Mexico border ...
The Guardian - Jan. 22