Deceptive Mailers Thank Trump For "Trans Rights"—His Record Was Abysmal
Mailers were found in mailboxes across Iowa thanking Trump for support of LGBTQ+ people, presumably sent from a competing candidate. However, no president was worse on LGBTQ+ rights.
As the nation celebrated the July 4th holidays, Iowans found mailers in their mailboxes expressing gratitude toward former President Donald Trump for his alleged support of LGBTQ+ rights, despite his administration’s notoriously poor record on LGBTQ+ people. Iowa, renowned for its pivotal role as the host of the first caucus for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, is preparing for the first Republican caucus on January 15 to determine the Republican Party's representative.
Meanwhile, the campaign staff of Governor DeSantis has been under scrutiny for sharing a video ad that many called out as homophobic. This has led to many Republicans distancing themselves from the candidate, whose poll numbers have fallen in recent weeks. The contentious ads likewise sought to highlight Trump’s “support” for Pride.
While it is important to call out the fake and manipulative nature of these ads, it's also crucial to underscore that no modern president has had a worse track record on LGBTQ+ rights than Trump. President Trump took every chance he could to make life harder for transgender people in the United States with his policies.
The misleading mailer, first noticed by conservative talk show host Steven Deace, portrayed former President Donald Trump as "pro-LGBTQ+" for welcoming Log Cabin Republicans to his Mar-a-Lago resort and permitting a transgender contestant to participate in the Miss Universe pageant. The mailer seems to be funded by an obscure organization named "Advancing Our Values," which has adopted measures to veil the identities of the campaign supporters backing it.
See the mailer here:
The mailer is likely designed to alienate Republican voters, who may be receptive to such messages given the recent fear campaign targeted at LGBTQ+ people in America. Despite this, the reality of the Trump administration remains a stark counterpoint to any portrayal of his support for the LGBTQ+ community. Prominent organizations like the Human Rights Campaign have gone on record, branding him as the "worst president in history" for LGBTQ+ rights due to specific actions taken during his tenure. Such actions include:
Banning transgender people from the military. In July, 2017, President Trump tweeted that he was banning transgender people from the military moving forward. The effects were catastrophic for transgender servicemembers, many of whom had been in the process of changing their legal gender markers in the armed forces. Military Times reported that many commands abandoned efforts to integrate transgender troops, and military readers of this newsletter were forced to present as their assigned sex at birth.
Removing all protections for LGBTQ+ students. After appointing Betsy Devos as the Secretary of Education, she immediately rescinded Obama’s 2017 guidance protecting LGBTQ+ students and title IX rules that protected LGBTQ+ students from sexual harassment.
Denying asylum to trans people. The Trump administration notoriously refused asylum to many transgender applicants whose lives were at risk upon return to their home country. One such example was a Salvadoran trans woman known as Camila, who was murdered after being denied asylum and returned to El Salvadore.
Appointing judges that would oppose LGBTQ+ rights. No presidency has been more disastrous for the LGBTQ+ community than the Trump presidency. His supreme court appointments recently ruled that businesses have the right to discriminate against LGBTQ+ people. His lower court appointments, such as Judge Kacsmaryk in Texas, have used their power to curtail LGBTQ+ rights and the rights to bodily autonomy across the United States.
Allowing homeless shelters to discriminate against transgender people. The Trump administration released guidance that stated homeless shelters could discriminate against transgender people. One way that the administration suggested homeless shelters do this is by looking for “the presence of facial hair” to determine if a homeless individual was trans.
Revoking visas of unmarried gay diplomats. The Trump administration revoked visas for gay diplomats partners who were not legally married in 2018. Because many of these diplomats work in countries where same-sex marriage is not legal, many opted not to marry. This move was criticized by Samantha Power, former U.S. ambassador to the U.N, who called the move “needlessly cruel and bigoted.”
The actions listed above represent just a fraction of the myriad measures taken by the Trump administration that impacted the LGBTQ+ community. The narrative proposed by the DeSantis campaign—that Trump was a friend to the LGBTQ+ community—is significantly contradicted by his presidential track record. It appears that the DeSantis campaign is strategically using anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment to bolster its election chances. Although we do not know if this mailer comes from the DeSantis campaign, it is in line with the campaign’s recent advertising push.
This tactic could potentially push Trump to adopt even more extreme positions on LGBTQ+ issues. Indeed, there are already indications of this shift, as demonstrated by a recent Trump campaign advertisement vowing to challenge gender-affirming care "at any age."
See Trump’s ad here:
As the Iowa caucus looms six months away, it's uncertain whether the DeSantis campaign will continue to propagate the notion of Trump as a pro-LGBTQ+ advocate. Based on recent interactions with potential presidential contenders, it appears that LGBTQ+ issues may take center stage in the ensuing debates. Governor Nikki Haley, another presidential hopeful, recently sparked controversy by implying that transgender youth contribute to the suicidal ideation of teenage girls merely by participating in sports. Simultaneously, Governor Mike Pence's campaign has declared their intent to launch a national campaign against policies that affirm transgender identities in schools.
Trapped in this escalating political discourse are the transgender individuals who have already confronted over 500 legislative bills targeting every aspect of their lives. They now face the prospect of witnessing Republicans vying over the severity of their policies toward the community throughout the presidential election cycle.
There is no doubt that in 2024, GOP candidates at all levels will be rushing to adopt ever more extreme anti-LGBT and anti-trans positions. Besides the horrible specific impacts on trans people, the ongoing wave of broad legislative attacks speak volumes about the sad current state of our country. A healthy democracy does not need to marginalize and take away rights from already-vulnerable groups, so that a culture war can be fought for political purposes.
Good thing only fools would believe tRump was ever supportive of anyone but himself. Imagine being a supporter of his, you’d have to be a miserable despicable and self loathing person to follow such a deplorable degenerate.