After alienating Democratic voters with unsubstantiated claims that the Women and Girls in Sports Protection Act would allow child predators to give genital exams to young girls, the left’s two most prominent figures at the House of Representatives do not resolve the issue.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. were among 206 Democrats who voted against a bill that would bar transgender athletes from competing against girls and women last week.
Jeffries and Ocasio-Cortez pushed unsubstantiated claims that she would subject girls to genital examinations by child predators. No language exists in the bill that suggests genital exams would occur, and Republicans have argued that proof of birth could have been determined by a birth certificate.
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Jeffries and Ocasio-Cortez did not respond to multiple requests for comment from PK Press Club Digital regarding their arguments, the subsequent accomplishments of Democratic voters who said they were leaving the party in response to the arguments, and data that suggests a Majority of Democrats oppose transgender inclusion in women’s sports.
However, Ocasio-Cortez addressed the idea of the culture wars over transgender being a distraction during an interview on “The Daily Show” on Thursday.
“When we allow ourselves to be constantly distracted by these culture wars around trans people, it’s a new thing every day, and the answer is not that we let these people be attacked, it’s that we say :’What are you doing, man?’ I think we need to make defending these people so much of an afterthought that it’s not even a debate,” Ocasio-Cortez said.
“Like, we need to understand and see the bait for what it is, but we don’t take the bait by letting those rights erode and go by the wayside.”
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Ocasio-Cortez’s suggestion that the party should make transgender protections an afterthought after delivering a tirade in defense of transgender people and opposing protections for women and girls in sports on the ground the House of Representatives last week.
Her rant provoked widespread mockery, and Democrats have since spoken of their disgust with her and the party’s handling of the party.
Distinguished Rutgers law professor Gary Francione, a Democrat and LGBTQ rights advocate, told PK Press Club Digital that he left the Democratic Party in response to its opposition to the bill.
“It made me very upset because it screamed lack of integrity, lack of honesty,” Francione told PK Press Club Digital in an exclusive interview. “This is how you fight battles? By trying to insult other people who oppose and disagree with you and insinuate that they are child molesters or pedophiles? It seems to me that you lost the game. …I don’t know how they’re going to come back from this.”
Francione said many other Democrats in his law and education network share his disdain for the party’s response to the bill and will also leave the party.
“I can say with confidence from the people I know who are Democrats that I’ve talked to, the vast majority of them are very unhappy about all of this and think the party has lost its way,” Francione said. “I know a couple who said they were going to [unregister]. ”
Voter registration data suggests the party is losing members in Francione’s home state of Pennsylvania. However, no specific information to explain why is available. Prominent political organizer Scott Pressler announced on representatives.
Only two Democrats joined the Republican majority in voting for the bill, Reps. Henry Cuellar and Vicente Gonzalez, both of Texas. Their decision to defect from the rest of the party and vote to protect women and girls in sport reflects a growing stance among many of their party’s voters and independents, recent data shows.
A recent New York Times / IPSOS investigation Found that the vast majority of Americans, including the majority of Democrats, do not believe transgender athletes should be allowed to compete in women’s sports. Of the 2,128 people surveyed, 79% said biological males who identify as female should not be allowed to participate in women’s sports. Of the 1,025 people who identified as Democrats or who lean Democratic, 67% said transgender athletes should not be allowed to compete against women.
The Protecting Women and Girls in Sports Act is headed to the Senate after dying in the House, and it will need more votes by Democrats to get past a filibuster and move to President Donald Trump’s desk.
Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., told PK Press Club Digital in an exclusive interview that she expects and hopes the bill would get the Democratic votes it needs to pass the Senate.
“I would expect there would be some. I hope there would be some,” she said.
“A lot of my friends who are Democrats will tell you they think Title IX is a thing, and having biological men competing against women is inappropriate. And they want opportunities for their daughters or their nieces or granddaughters .And it’s frustrating for them when they listen to or witness a transgender man playing in a women’s or women’s league.
Blackburn added that she had “no idea” what Democrats who suggested the law would subject girls to genital exams were thinking when they made that argument.
“I find it very difficult to believe that protecting girls in sport would have such a negative effect,” Blackburn said. “Looking at the contents of the bill is the best way to argue and know that a large majority of Americans support protecting girls in girls’ sports.”
