Donald Trump on Civil Rights : Oct 15, 2024
AdWatch: Kamala is for they/them; Trump is for you

The ads focus on taxpayer-funded gender transitions for people in prison and immigrant detainees. They use Vice President Kamala Harris' comments from a 2019 [questionnaire] in which she said she supported transgender inmates having access to gender-affirming surgery.

"Kamala is for they/them," one ad says. "Trump is for you."

The Trump campaign is betting that with time dwindling until Nov. 5, the issue of transgender rights will sway voters more than the economy or immigration. Trump has underscored that on the campaign trail, often repeating a line about "keeping men out of women's sports"--it often gets the most applause at his rallies.

Tim Walz on Civil Rights : Aug 6, 2024
Added religious-liberty protections to human-rights statutes

[A Republican] state lawmaker was critical of Walz for failing to criticize 2023 state legislation that sought to give people identifying as transgender protected status without guaranteeing religious-liberty exemptions.

This year, Walz approved new legislation that added religious-liberty protections to Minnesota's human-rights statutes, a measure that was strongly supported by the state's Catholic bishops.

JD Vance on Jobs : Aug 2, 2024
Protecting transgender workers betrays traditionalists

Senator J.D. Vance lashed out at the 'conservative legal movement' after the Supreme Court ruled that gay and transgender employees should be protected from job discrimination. "The conservative legal movement has accomplished two things: libertarian political economy [enforced by judges] and betrayal of social conservatives and traditionalists,' Vance tweeted." [Washington Examiner, 6/15/20]

Donald Trump on Civil Rights : Mar 30, 2024
Blasphemy to promote transgender visibility on Easter Sunday

FactCheck (Wikipedia downloaded 4/5/202):International Transgender Day of Visibility (often referred to as TDOV) is an annual event occurring every March 31 since 2009. dedicated to celebrating transgender people and raising awareness of discrimination faced by transgender people worldwide. In 2024, TDOV coincided with the Christian holiday of Easter that year. President Biden's support of TDOV was condemned by some Christian Republicans, which transgender advocates say is manufactured.

Jill Stein on Civil Rights : Dec 18, 2023
Ensure rights and freedoms for all marginalized groups

Ron DeSantis on Families & Children : Dec 6, 2023
Disallow men from going into little girls' bathrooms

Nikki Haley: When I was governor, I said boys go into boys' bathrooms, girls go into girls' bathrooms and if anyone else has an issue, they use a private bathroom. When Ron was running for governor, he said he didn't think bathroom bills were a good use of his time.

Ron DeSantis: I signed a bathroom bill in Florida, so that's obviously not true. I signed it, you didn't. You killed it. I signed it. I stood up for little girls.

Vivek Ramaswamy on Families & Children : Dec 6, 2023
Transgenderism is a mental health disorder

Chris Christie: No, because Republicans believe in less government, not more. I trust parents.

Ron DeSantis: I signed legislation in Florida banning the mutilation of minors because [transgender surgery on minors] is wrong.

Vivek Ramaswamy: I think the north star here is transgenderism is a mental health disorder. We don't let you smoke a cigarette by the age of 18. We don't let you have an addictive drink of alcohol by the age of 21. I just challenged Ron DeSantis to go one step further and support what I think is clearly within the authority to do using federal funds just like Reagan did in '84 for the Highway Act that said the minimum drinking age needs to be 21. We can do the same thing when it comes to banning genital mutilation or chemical castration. I know Ron's been unclear about on the federal level. I'm crystal clear. That's where I stand. That's a mental health disorder. That's where we need to be at.

Nikki Haley on Families & Children : Dec 6, 2023
Private bathrooms instead of transgender girls' bathroom

Nikki Haley: When I was governor, 10 years ago when the bathroom situation came up, we had maybe a handful of kids that were dealing with an issue and I said we don't need to bring government into this, but boys go into boys' bathrooms, girls go into girls' bathrooms and if anyone else has an issue, they use a private bathroom. Now 10 years later we see that this issue has exploded and this shows how hypocritical Ron continues to be. When he was running for governor and they asked him about that, he said he didn't think bathroom bills were a good use of his time.

Ron DeSantis: I signed a bathroom bill in Florida, so that's obviously not true. I signed it, you didn't. You killed it.

Chris Christie on Families & Children : Dec 6, 2023
Less government control over parenting choices

Christie: No, because Republicans believe in less government, not more. I trust parents.

Q: When you were governor in 2017, you signed a law that required new guidelines for schools dealing with transgender students: to accept a child's preferred gender identity even if the minor's parents objected. It said that there is no duty for schools to notify parents if their son or daughter changes their gender identity. How is any of that pro-parental rights?

Christie: That's simply not true. That law was put into effect in 2018 after I was out of office. I stood up every single time for parents to be able to make the decisions for their minor children. And you know what? Every once in a while parents are going to make decisions that we disagree with, but the minute you start to take those rights away from parents, you don't know that slippery slope, what rights are going to be taken away next.

Chase Oliver on Families & Children : Aug 22, 2023
No state mandates on transgender girls athletics

"Let kids be kids, and when it comes to more competitive athletics, let individual leagues determine that stuff, but don't let it come from the government," he said.

And in keeping with the Libertarian Party's maximal positions on the Bill of Rights, Oliver is opposed to laws targeting drag.

"Drag is an art form," he said. "It is a performance art and like any performance art it can range from completely family friendly to something quite explicit--just like cinema, music, visual arts. And that's how drag should be treated."

Marianne Williamson on Civil Rights : Jun 6, 2023
Denial of LGBTQ rights is a stain on our national character

Marianne Williamson on Civil Rights : May 15, 2023
Declare transgender murder/suicide a national emergency

President Biden has voiced support for transgender rights, but has faced some scrutiny from LGBTQ+ advocates over his plan for transgender athletes in high school sports.

Williamson has called for more protections for the LGBTQ+ community, including for transgender individuals. She supports declaring transgender murder and suicide rates a national emergency, legislation requiring police departments to "ensure fairer interactions with transgender people," and implementing LGBTQ+ inclusive public education, according to her campaign site.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., however, has broken from most Democrats on one key issue surrounding transgender rights, saying that he is "against people participating in women's sports who are biologically male."

Nikki Haley on Civil Rights : May 4, 2023
Transgender women in sports is "women's issue of our time"

Perry Johnson on Health Care : May 4, 2023
Never again will we allow transition therapy for minors

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Civil Rights : Apr 30, 2023
Against biological males participating in women's sports

Donald Trump on Principles & Values : Apr 23, 2023
Time to "bring back God" to schools and public squares

Mike Pence on Civil Rights : Apr 22, 2023
Battle against radical gender ideology for religious freedom

Asa Hutchinson on Civil Rights : Apr 22, 2023
Fought Obama order requiring gender neutral bathrooms

Donald Trump on Health Care : Apr 22, 2023
Cease promoting gender transitioning for people of all ages

Tulsi Gabbard on Principles & Values : Apr 22, 2023
Democrats want to erase God from every facet of public life

Vivek Ramaswamy on Civil Rights : Mar 28, 2023
Identifying as transgender can be a sign of mental illness

Kristi Noem on Civil Rights : Jan 11, 2022
In South Dakota, only girls can play in girls' sports

[OTI note: the intent is to bar transgender girls from participating.]

Larry Elder on Civil Rights : Sep 13, 2021
Opposes rights for transgender people in restrooms, sports

Joe Biden on Health Care : May 10, 2021
No transgendered discrimination by healthcare providers

PROMISE PARTLY KEPT: (NBC News, 5/10/21): The Biden administration is reversing a policy introduced that limited protections for transgender people in health care. In a victory for LGBTQ advocates, the change will bar health care providers who receive federal funding from discriminating based on someone's gender identity or sexual orientation.

ANALYSIS: If a transgendered person goes to an HMO that doesn't receive federal funding, it's still legal to discriminate against them for being transgendered--that's not "all people"! To address private HMOs would require state and federal legislation.

Joe Biden on Civil Rights : Apr 28, 2021
To all transgender Americans: your president has your back

Joe Biden on Homeland Security : Mar 31, 2021
Kept promise to allow transgendered to serve in military

PROMISE KEPT: (Military Times, 3/31/21): The Pentagon swept away Trump-era policies that largely banned transgender people from serving in the military, issuing new rules that offer them wider access to medical care and assistance with gender transition. The new department regulations allow transgender people who meet military standards to enlist and serve openly in their self-identified gender, and they will be able to get medically necessary transition-related care authorized by law.

Kristi Noem on Civil Rights : Mar 30, 2021
Bars transgender athletes from women's sports

Donald Trump on Civil Rights : Feb 28, 2021
Transgender protections destroying women's sports

Joe Biden on Civil Rights : Feb 4, 2021
Reverse ban on transgender individuals serving in military

And finally, to successfully reassert our diplomacy and keep Americans safe, prosperous, and free, we must restore the health and morale of our foreign policy institutions.

The United States will again lead not just by the example of our power but the power of our example. Within hours of taking office, I signed an executive order overturning the hateful, discriminatory Muslim ban; reversed the ban on transgender individuals serving in our military.

Joe Biden on Civil Rights : Oct 15, 2020
Son Beau got transgendered bill passed in Delaware

Chase Oliver on Civil Rights : Sep 21, 2020
Equal rights regardless of color; even black transgender

In the Podcast Q interview Oliver, a former Obama Democrat, also discusses becoming a Libertarian, protecting black transgender people, campaigning with masks and hand sanitizer, combatting HIV and breaking through to voters in the heavily Democratic district. "At the end of the day, [Libertarians] believe in criminal justice reform. We believe in limited government that is answerable to the people. And we believe that everyone regardless of color, creed sexual orientation, deserves equal inherent rights," Oliver said.

Donald Trump on Civil Rights : Jun 15, 2020
Job discrimination rules don't apply to transgender status

By a vote of 6-3, the court said Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which makes it illegal for employers to discriminate because of a person's sex, among other factors, also covers sexual orientation and transgender status.

The Trump administration had urged the court to rule that Title VII does not cover cases like these, in a reversal from the position the government took during the Obama administration. "The ordinary meaning of 'sex' is biologically male or female; it does not include sexual orientation," the Justice Department said. "An employer who discriminates against employees in same-sex relationships thus does not violate Title VII as long as it treats men in same-sex relationships the same as women in same-sex relationships."

Joe Biden on Civil Rights : Jun 15, 2020
No job discrimination for transgender status

By a vote of 6-3, the court said Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which makes it illegal for employers to discriminate because of a person's sex, among other factors, also covers sexual orientation and transgender status.

Joe Biden called the ruling "a momentous step forward for our country" in a statement, adding that the court had "confirmed the simple but profoundly American idea that every human being should be treated with respect and dignity, that everyone should be able to live openly, proudly, as their true selves without fear."

The Trump administration had urged the court to rule that Title VII does not cover cases like these, in a reversal from the position the government took during the Obama administration.

Joe Biden on Civil Rights : Oct 10, 2019
Yes to transgender in military and right to do as others do

BIDEN: If I were president, you would not have to choose. The fact of the matter is transgender men and women should be able to do anything anybody else can do. There should be no difference.

Kamala Harris on Civil Rights : Oct 10, 2019
Protect those who are more vulnerable to hate

HARRIS: I will put resources into ensuring that all people are safe, with a particular understanding of some of the most vulnerable communities. We know certain populations are more vulnerable to hate based on other people's prejudice and racism and hateful thoughts. And we as a society must acknowledge the truth of that and then make sure that we create safe communities in which they can exist.

Will Hurd on Civil Rights : Jun 18, 2019
Allow transgender people in the military

[Voting yes would overturn the Trump Administration's ban on military service by people with gender dysphoria; voting no would maintain the ban on transgendered military service.]

Before April, transgender people could enlist and serve openly in the military thanks to a policy change during the Obama administration. But under the new Trump administration policy, a diagnosis of gender dysphoria disqualifies potential enlistees, and a diagnosis of gender dysphoria--with the exception of transgender people already serving in the armed forces--is cause for discharge.

Howie Hawkins on Civil Rights : May 28, 2019
Amend Civil Rights Act to include LGBTQIA+

Kamala Harris on Civil Rights : Apr 22, 2019
Ally of LGBTQ community; must end discrimination

Marianne Williamson on Civil Rights : Apr 8, 2019
Expand LGBTQ rights to end discrimination

This is not only unacceptable; this is in direct violation of our founding principles.

Generation after generation, people have fought to rid our country of the "except for's." "Except for blacks," "except for women," and so forth. Today, we are challenged by the ongoing prejudice that seeks to repudiate the fundamental American dedication to freedom and equality for all. "Except for them" is a stain on our national character.

Bernie Sanders on Civil Rights : Feb 19, 2019
1983: Approved "Gay Rights Day" in Burlington Vermont

Donald Trump on Homeland Security : Feb 19, 2019
Ban on transgender people serving openly in the US military

Kamala Harris on Civil Rights : Jan 21, 2019
Let transgender people access the bathroom of their choice

• Same-sex marriage should be legal. Transgender people should use the bathroom of their choice. States need not necessarily pay for sexual reassignment surgery.
• On gay rights, Harris refused to defend California's law banning same-sex marriage while she was attorney general.
• She believes same-sex marriage should be legal and filed a court brief supporting transgender people's position that they should have access to the bathroom of their choice.
• She does not support states necessarily paying for gender reassignment surgery of transgender inmates, and once filed a court motion seeking to block the procedure in California.

Tulsi Gabbard on Homeland Security : Jan 14, 2019
Allow transgender Americans in the military

• Gabbard supports the legal status of same-sex marriage, opposes attempts to bar transgender Americans from the military and supports laws to ban discrimination based on sexual preference.
• Gabbard has changed her position. In 2004, she opposed a bill allowing civil unions for same-sex couples in Hawaii.
• Hawaii's LGBT caucus withheld their endorsement from her in 2016. She has said that her time in Iraq sparked soul-searching and led to changes in her beliefs.

Nikki Haley on Civil Rights : Aug 3, 2017
No need for any new transgender bathroom law

Setting aside for the moment that North Carolina's HB2 compromise, HB142, is just more of the same anti-LGBTQ hatred with a slightly different name, it is important to note that South Carolina has so far killed any effort to see a similar bill come to pass in South Carolina.

Both former Governor Nikki Haley and current Governor Henry McMaster have said there is no need for such a law. Templeton said she thinks transgender people should use the bathrooms matching their birth gender, not their identity. She stopped short of calling for a law to be passed.

Marco Rubio on Civil Rights : Oct 9, 2016
Men's bathrooms are for men & women's bathrooms for women

Murphy: Yes

Rubio: No. Supports overturning same-sex marriage ruling.

Q: Should transgender individuals have the right to use public bathrooms of their choice?

Murphy: Yes. Cosponsored The Equality Act to ban discrimination based on gender identity.

Rubio: No. Men's bathrooms are for men & women's bathrooms are for women. Advocates for reversing Obama's Executive Order on gender identity and opposes making sexual orientation a protected class.

Mike Pence on Civil Rights : Sep 19, 2016
RFRA Fix: ensure that religious freedom doesn't discriminate

The law sparked widespread outrage. Opponents contended that it would give license to religious conservatives to refuse service to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals. In response, several major events and corporations--including Salesforce.com and the NCAA--threatened to limit business ventures in the state or boycott it altogether.

Pence adamantly defended the RFRA legislation and refused to say whether it allowed for discrimination, which led to extensive questioning of his underlying motives. So much so that he quietly signed a subsequent piece of legislation--dubbed the "RFRA Fix"--that clarified that the law did not allow businesses to discriminate based on a customer's sexual orientation or gender identity.

Jill Stein on Civil Rights : Aug 8, 2016
Protect LGBTQIA+ people from discrimination

• Protect LGBTQIA+ people from discrimination.
• Defend indigenous rights, lands and treaties.

Mike Pence on Civil Rights : Sep 24, 2015
Religious Freedom Act is not about LGBT discrimination

"This bill is not about discrimination, and if I thought it legalized discrimination in any way in Indiana, I would have vetoed it," Pence said at the time. "In fact, it does not even apply to disputes between private parties unless government action is involved. For more than 20 years, the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act has never undermined our nation's anti-discrimination laws, and it will not in Indiana."

Mike Huckabee on Homeland Security : Aug 9, 2015
No paid transgender surgery for members of the military

Mike Huckabee on Homeland Security : Aug 6, 2015
Military is not social experiment: no transgendered soldiers

HUCKABEE: The military is not a social experiment. The purpose of the military is kill people and break things. It's not to transform the culture by trying out some ideas that some people think would make us a different country and more diverse. The purpose is to protect America. I'm not sure how paying for transgender surgery for soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines makes our country safer.

Jill Stein on Civil Rights : Jul 6, 2015
No discrimination based on orientation whether it's LGB or T

OnTheIssues:In the wake of national same-sex marriage, what about transgender rights?

Stein: I include transgender rights in GLBT protection. Sexual orientation should not be a basis for discrimination whether it's LGB or T. In my first run for office in 2002, when this issue was first brought to my attention, I was for marriage, not just civil unions. It wasn't until 3 years ago that the leadership of the Democratic Party changed its tune--even in 2004 Hillary was still opposing gay marriage. Vice President Joe Biden finally broke the ice [by saying he was "comfortable" with gay marriage in 2012]-- by that time gay marriage was rating highly favorable in the polls--is that leadership? I believe in doing what is right and leading the way. The Democratic Party is doing the opposite of that.

Mike Huckabee on Civil Rights : Jun 2, 2015
Don't force children to accept transgender choice by others

"For those who do not think that we are under threat, simply recognize that the fact that we are now in city after city watching ordinances say that your 7-year-old daughter, if she goes into the restroom cannot be offended and you can't be offended if she's greeted there by a 42-year-old man who feels more like a woman than he does a man."

Huckabee said there was "something inherently wrong about forcing little children to be a part of this social experiment. And yet today we are the ones who are ridiculed and scorned because we point out the obvious," he said.

Jill Stein on Civil Rights : Jul 31, 2014
Recognize gay marriages & civil unions from abroad in visas

• We will pursue legislation against all forms of hate crimes, including those directed against people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, transgender, and intersex. Offenders must pay compensation to the LGBTIQ people who have suffered violence and injustice.
• The Green Party will end all Federal military and civilian aid to national governments whose laws result in the imprisonment or otherwise bring harm to citizens and residents based on sexual orientation, or gender identity, characteristics, and expression.
• The Green Party will enact a policy that the U.S. Government recognize all international marriages and legal equivalents, such as civil unions, in processing visitor and immigration visas.
• The Green Party would end security surveillance and covert infiltration of organizations that promote equal rights on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.