Speaker Mike Johnson maintains House transgender bathroom ban

Washington, D.C.: So, Speaker Mike Johnson just renewed this policy that says transgender folks can’t use the bathrooms that match their gender identity near the House Chamber. It’s a pretty big deal, and it was part of a list of rules for Congress that got mentioned in the Congressional Record.

Now, this ban isn’t in the official House rules package that passed recently, but it’s still a thing. The policy says that all single-sex facilities, like restrooms and locker rooms, are only for people of that biological sex. It’s a bit controversial, to say the least.

The sergeant-at-arms will be the one enforcing this rule, and it covers all areas of the Capitol that Johnson controls. That includes the House hallways and other spaces. But hey, there are private restrooms for each member and some unisex options around, so it’s not all bad.

This whole thing started when Rep. Nancy Mace proposed it last November after Sarah McBride, the first openly trans member of Congress, was elected. Mace has been pretty vocal about her stance, saying she’ll fight against any man using women’s restrooms.

Johnson backed Mace’s idea, claiming that women deserve their own spaces. Mace even mentioned she’d push to make this bathroom policy official in Congress, saying it’s been the House’s stance since Johnson’s comments last year.

McBride, on the other hand, thinks this is just a distraction from real issues. She’s said she’ll follow the rules, even if she doesn’t agree with them. It’s frustrating for her, especially since she feels like this is just a way for some Republicans to avoid tackling bigger problems.

Interestingly, while Republicans have ramped up anti-trans rhetoric lately, Trump seemed to downplay the bathroom issue in a recent interview, agreeing with McBride that lawmakers should focus on more pressing matters.

So, it’s a mixed bag of opinions and policies, and it looks like this debate isn’t going away anytime soon.