Donald Trump, the president-elect, stated on Thursday that he concurs with Sarah McBride, the incoming representative and the first transgender member of Congress, that politicians ought to concentrate on more significant matters than deciding which restrooms transgender people should be permitted to use.
Trump’s remarks coincide with a continuing debate on whether transgender individuals should be allowed to use restrooms in the Capitol building that correspond to their gender identity.
When Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., proposed a resolution last month to forbid House members and congressional staff from using single-sex facilities other than those that correspond to their biological sex, the controversy got underway. Mace then informed reporters that McBride, who was elected to Congress last month, was the clear target of the motion, which has the backing of Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. The resolution was previously characterized by Delaware Democrat McBride as an effort to divert focus from important policy matters.
The president-elect was asked if he agreed with McBride that, as Time put it, we should all be focused on more important concerns than which toilets trans people use in a lengthy interview with Time magazine, which recently named Trump its Person of the Year. “I do agree with that,” Trump retorted. Absolutely, on that.
Requests for comment were not immediately answered by Mace or McBride.
Taylor Haulsee, a spokesman for Johnson, directed NBC News to the speaker’s earlier remarks regarding the matter, in which he claimed that restrooms are only for people of that biological sex.
The U.S. Capitol Police reported on Tuesday that they had taken into custody an individual who was accused of assaulting Mace. Mace said on X that night that a pro-tr*ns man had physically harassed her at the Capitol. Trump called her following the incident, she wrote in a different X post.
During an event where the congressman spoke, a foster care advocate who saw Mace that night questioned her account on Wednesday, calling the exchange between Mace and the individual she accused of assault “quite normal.”
Trump refused to respond to a question about whether he more generally supports transgender individuals using the restrooms of their choice before stating that he agreed with McBride. According to the LGBTQ think tank Movement Advancement Project, transgender persons are already legally restricted from using certain toilets in 14 states.
Trump told Time, “I don’t want to get into the bathroom issue.” They will have to settle whatever the law ultimately decides since it has to do with a very tiny number of people and has torn our nation apart.
“I am a big believer in the Supreme Court, and I’m going by their rulings,” he added. “So far, I think their rulings have been rulings that people are going along with, but we’re talking about a very small number of people, and we’re talking about it, and it gets massive coverage, and it’s not a lot of people.”
The subject of transgender restrooms is not being considered by the Supreme Court. However, it is considering whether a Tennessee statute that prohibits trans kids from receiving transition-related medical care is constitutional.
Trump was also questioned by Time over his transgender-focused campaign advertisements. In one, Vice President Kamala Harris’s prior support for taxpayer-funded gender-affirming surgery for prisoners was ridiculed by the campaign. With the slogan, “President Trump is for you; Kamala is for they/them,” the advertisement came to a close.
It’s true, Trump admitted to Time. We support Trump.
He responded, “I mean, Trump is definitely for us, okay?” when questioned further. The vast majority of individuals in this country are us. In addition, I want everyone to be treated equally. Forget about whether it’s a majority or not. I want people to be treated well and fairly.
On the campaign trail, Trump promised he would roll back the Biden administration s Title IX protections for LGBTQ students if he were re-elected. On Thursday, he appeared less committed to the idea.
I m going to look at it very closely. We re looking at it right now. We re gonna look at it. We re gonna look at everything, he said. Look, the country is torn apart. We re gonna look at everything.
Note: Every piece of content is rigorously reviewed by our team of experienced writers and editors to ensure its accuracy. Our writers use credible sources and adhere to strict fact-checking protocols to verify all claims and data before publication. If an error is identified, we promptly correct it and strive for transparency in all updates, feel free to reach out to us via email. We appreciate your trust and support!