"We've known for some time that the rise of anti-trans politics in the Republican Party was likely an intentional tactic devised by political strategists in backrooms. But the recent events in Washington, D.C., and the eventual passage of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) bring the craven nature of those moves out into the light. In the wake of same-sex marriage being legalized nationwide by the Supreme Court in 2015, Republicans needed another minority rights issue to get their base angry over."
"Prior to the government shutdown at the end of September, the appropriations bills that conservatives in the Republican-controlled Congress were putting forward included a wealth of anti-trans riders. Six amendments were added to the 2026 NDAA, the $900 billion military funding bill, on September 10 that would have restricted gender-affirming care for service members and their families, banned trans women from sports, banned trans people from using the restroom at military facilities, removed gender identity questions from military surveys, and banned Pride flags."
Republican political strategy elevated anti-trans politics after nationwide same-sex marriage legalization to mobilize a frustrated base. Conservatives in the Republican-controlled Congress inserted numerous anti-trans riders into appropriations and into six amendments to the 2026 NDAA that targeted gender-affirming care, transgender participation in sports, restroom access at military facilities, military survey questions, and displays of Pride flags. As a government shutdown loomed and stopgap funding measures were negotiated, those anti-trans riders were removed, indicating those measures were included partly to appease extremists and then discarded as negotiable concessions during deal-making.
Read at LGBTQ Nation
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