Republican Rep. Nancy Mace, weeks after the first openly transgender person was elected to Congress, introduced a bill banning transgender women from using women’s bathrooms in the Capitol and in House offices.
“Biological men do not belong in private women’s spaces. Period. Full stop. End of story,” the congresswoman wrote in a social media post announcing the resolution. The bill hopes to prevent members and staff “using single-sex facilities other than those corresponding to their biological sex.”
When questioned on the Capitol steps, Mace doubled down, saying her move was specifically aimed at congresswoman-elect Sarah McBride “and more.” “If we can’t do it here, we can’t do it anywhere,” Mace said.
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“Sarah McBride doesn’t get a say here,” Mace also posted.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene backed Mace while misgendering McBride, claiming they are “not allowed to use our women’s restrooms, our women’s gym, our locker rooms and our spaces that are specified for women.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson told Axios, “We’re going to talk about that. We’re working on the issue.”
Within the hour, McBride, who made history earlier this month, condemned Mace for “manufacturing culture wars.”
“This is a blatant attempt from far right-wing extremists to distract from the fact that they have no real solutions to what Americans are facing,” the Delaware state senator said in a statement. “We should be focused on bringing down the cost of housing, health care, and child care, not manufacturing culture wars.”
The top Democrat on the House Administration Committee, which handles how things operate in the lower legislature and in the Capitol, made a similar point.
“I think we have a lot of problems in America,” New York Rep. Joe Morelle told Axios. “I don’t think spending time worrying about the restrooms is an order of priority here. I think Nancy Mace should focus on other things.”
