U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) put forward a resolution on Monday requiring representatives and staff at the U.S. House and Capitol to use bathrooms aligning with their biological sex, shortly after the election of the first transgender-identifying congressperson.
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“Biological men do not belong in private women’s spaces. Period. Full stop. End of story,” said Rep. Mace.
“Allowing biological males into single-sex facilities, such as restrooms, locker rooms, and changing rooms designed for women jeopardizes the safety and dignity of Members, officers, and employees of the House who are female,” says the resolution.
Mace’s resolution came in response to Delaware’s election of the nation’s first-ever trans-identifying congressman, Rep.-elect Sarah McBride (D-Del.), a biological male who was originally named Tim.
Rep. McBride responded to Mace’s resolution by accusing her of extremism for wanting people to use the bathrooms corresponding with their sex.
“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. We should be focused on bringing down the cost of housing, health care, and child care, not manufacturing culture wars,” said McBride on X.
Under Mace’s resolution, the House of Representatives’ Sergeant-at-Arms would be instructed to keep McBride out of the bathroom designated for women.
The spat over Mace’s bill is just one facet of a debate over the left-wing embrace of gender ideology that has led some older, more traditional Democrats, including Maine Gov. Janet Mills (D), to question the party’s overwhelming focus on transgenderism.
Telling a Portland newspaper that Democrats should avoid getting bogged down in identity politics, Gov. Mills warned of the perception that Democrats are only for “transgender this and that, every multicultural person.”
Some other Republicans came out in support of Mace’s resolution, such as U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.).
“I support banning men from women’s restrooms in the Capitol, but that isn’t enough. Men should be banned from women’s restrooms in every federal building paid for by taxpayers,” said Rep. Greene.
Despite support from some Republicans, the fate of Mace’s resolution is far from decided.
Some high-ranking Republicans prefer to avoid the contentious cultural issue.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.) refused to say whether he would support Mace’s resolution.
He avoided a question on Mace’s resolution from a reporter, instead claiming that they will provide “appropriate accommodation” to every Congress member.
“This is an issue that congress has never had to address before, and we’re going to do that in a deliberate fashion with member consensus on it, and we will accommodate the needs of every single person,” said Speaker Johnson.
Johnson also refused to answer a question about whether he believes McBride is a man or a woman.
After the interview, Johnson made a press appearance to clarify his position.
“For anybody who doesn’t know my well established record on this issue let me be unequivocally clear, a man is a man and a woman is a woman, and a man cannot become a woman,” said Johnson.
He did not specifically mention McBride and did not express support for Mace’s resolution.
McBride publicly announced his gender transition in 2012 at the age of 21, while a rising senior at American University in Washington, D.C., just one day after his term in the student government expired.
A 2011 article from American University’s newspaper, The Eagle, revealed that McBride had previously worked with Beau Biden’s campaign for Attorney General.
