U.S. Rep. Sarah McBride (D-DE) is calling out House Republicans for their “weird” and “bizarre” fixation on culture war issues — and particularly their obsession with her. As the first openly transgender member of Congress and the highest-ranking transgender elected official in the U.S., McBride is urging Republican lawmakers to focus on governing instead of their divisive rhetoric and tactics.
Congresswoman McBride has been attacked by House Republicans since before she was sworn in to office in January, particularly by U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC). But now some behavior has become so disruptive it is affecting the ability of Congress to do the people’s work.
On Tuesday, a House Foreign Affairs subcommittee chairman, U.S. Rep. Keith Self (R-TX) abruptly ended his own committee’s hearing after being chastised for addressing Congresswoman McBride as “Mr. McBride.” McBride responded by saying, “Thank you, Madam Chair.”
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When U.S. Rep. Bill Keating (D-MA) challenged Self for misgendering McBride, the chairman repeated his remarks, leading Keating to angrily criticize him.
“Mr. Chairman, you are out of order,” Keating declared, as USA Today reported. “Mr. Chairman, have you no decency? I mean, I’ve come to know you a little bit. But this is not decent.”
Self, reposting a MAGA influencer post, defended his actions by declaring, “It is the policy of the United States to recognize two sexes, male and female.” That “policy” comes from a Trump executive order, which applies to the executive branch but is not law. It is also, as Doctors for America noted, “medically inaccurate and fueled by transphobia.”
In support of Self, U.S. Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL) posted on social media, “Tim ‘Sarah’ McBride is a biological man and always will be.” That post received tremendous outrage.
Thursday morning at a press conference, McBride slammed House Republicans, while urging them to fulfill the responsibilities they were elected to perform.
“We will not take a lecture on decorum from a party that incited an insurrection,” McBride declared.
NOTUS reports that statement came “after a group of female lawmakers was asked about Republican criticism of Democratic antics during Donald Trump’s recent joint address and the episode on Tuesday involving McBride’s pronouns.”
“I appear to live rent-free in the minds of some of my Republican colleagues,” McBride continued.
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“I wish that they would spend even a fraction of the time that they spend thinking about me thinking about how to lower the costs for American families,” she added. “I wish they would spend a fraction of the time that they spend thinking about me, figuring out how to make government actually work better rather than making it work worse in order to prove that government can’t work.”
“They are obsessed with culture war issues,” McBride charged. “The Republican party is obsessed with culture war issues. It is weird and it is bizarre, and the American people deserve serious legislators, serious elected officials who are focused on bringing people together to deliver real results for the American people, not to play games and not to engage in school yard taunts.”
NOTUS also reported that “Republicans have repeatedly misgendered McBride since the start of her term. During her maiden floor speech, Republican Rep. Mary Miller — who was presiding over the chamber at the time — introduced McBride as the “gentleman from Delaware.”