‘It Is a State and Local Issue’
White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer says President Donald Trump believes the “issue” of transgender people and their civil rights is a state issue, and does not need federal attention.
Asked by the Washington Blade’s Chris Johnson about the newly-signed law that replaces North Carolina’s HB2 with another law that does not actually repeal the discriminatory law, Spicer said he had not asked Trump about the new law, but that “consistent with” his remarks during the campaign “he believes in states’ rights.”
Spicer went on to say that on restroom access, “the President’s made it clear…it is a state and local issue, not one that he believes needs federal attention.”
It’s disturbing that on International Day of Transgender Visibility the White House is trying to ignore the rights and protection needs of transgender people, who are among the most vulnerable of all communities.Â
The Trump administration has repeatedly made clear it wants to not just ignore transgender people, but is working to help harm them. Last month the administration revoked President Barack Obama’s guidance to schools on protecting transgender students and their rights. This week we learned the 2020 census will not include LGBT categories, and other Trump agencies are reportedly removing LGBT-specific issues and questions from their purview.
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