Rep. Nancy Mace Shouts Anti-Trans Slur 3 Times In A Row At Hearing And Goes Unpunished

The congresswoman has been behind multiple recent attempts to target transgender people, including her own colleague, transgender congresswoman Sarah McBride

Representative Nancy Mace (R-SC) launched into an anti-trans tirade during a Congressional hearing on “government efficiency and waste” for the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. While initially questioning Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds (R) about state spending, Mace abruptly pivoted to attacking USAID (United States Agency for International Development), a frequent target of President Donald Trump and Elon Musk amid their push to defund various federal programs. “This agency is funding some of the dumbest, I mean stupidest... just dumbest initiatives imaginable. All supported by the left,” she said, citing $2 million allocated to Guatemala for gender-affirming care before escalating her rhetoric further. “Does this advance the interest of American citizens? Paying for tr*nnies in Guatemala to the tune of $2 million dollars? Yes or no?”

Reynolds responded simply, “No,” before Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA) interjected, calling out Mace’s use of a slur and urging her to respect Congressional decorum. “The gentlelady has used a phrase that is considered a slur in the LGBTQ community and the trans community,” he said, before Mace cut him off with even more inflammatory rhetoric. “Trnny, trnny, tr*nny! I don’t really care. You want penises in women’s bathrooms, and I’m not gonna have it. No, thank you. It’s disgusting,” she said, turning to Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) for support. The room erupted in whispered discussion before Rep. James Comer (R-KY), the oversight chairman, called for order.

Connolly pressed forward, calling for a return to decorum. “To me, a slur is a slur, and here in the committee, a level of decorum requires us to try consciously to avoid slurs. You just heard the gentlelady actually actively, robustly repeat it, and I would just ask the chairman that she be counseled. We can engage in debate and policy discussion without offending human beings who are fellow citizens. And so, I would ask as a parliamentary inquiry whether the use of that phrase is not, in fact, a violation of the decorum rules.”

Mace interrupted Connolly’s speech, saying, “Mr. Chairman, I’m not gonna be counseled by a man over men and women’s spaces, or men who have mental health issues dressing as women. I’m not being counseled by some guy over this.” Comer, rather than addressing the clear breach of decorum, dismissed the remark, stating that he was not “up to date” on “LGBTQ terminology.” Mace faced no repercussions from her colleagues for using slurs during the hearing.

You can watch the full exchange here:

The lack of punishment for Mace’s outburst stands in stark contrast to the swift and severe consequences faced by trans women for far less. In 2023, Rep. Zooey Zephyr (D-MT), Montana’s first transgender lawmaker, criticized Republican legislators for endorsing a bill that would have forcibly detransitioned all transgender minors in the state. She stated, “I hope the next time there's an invocation and you bow your head in prayer, you see the blood on your hands." Her remarks triggered immediate outrage from Republican lawmakers, who misgendered her in an open letter calling for her resignation. Zephyr responded by highlighting the blatant hypocrisy in their calls for decorum and demands for her censure.

Mace’s escalating rhetoric is no outlier—it is a reflection of the Republican Party’s growing comfort with open hostility toward transgender people. She has used this same slur before, most notably in December, when she mocked transgender protesters speaking out against the Capitol’s bathroom ban, taunting them with a bullhorn and reading out Miranda rights as they were arrested. Just a month earlier, she went further, declaring it “offensive” that Rep. Sarah McBride (D-DE) could ever be considered her equal, while repeatedly misgendering McBride and making invasive remarks about her body. As attacks on transgender rights become a fixture of modern Republican politics, figures like Mace are emboldened to push the boundaries of what is considered acceptable discourse. If left unchecked, this pattern will only escalate, normalizing dehumanization and fueling further legislative and social persecution.