Republican politician claims Trump actually opposes ban on trans people in the military and the gaslighting is truly astonishing
Representative Matt Gaetz, a Republican from Florida, speaks during a House Judiciary Committee hearing December 12, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Alex Edelman -Pool/Getty Images)
A Republican congressman is claiming that Donald Trump, who banned transgender people from serving in the military, is actually opposed to his own ban.
Trump abruptly announced a ban on transgender soldiers via Twitter in July 2017, making clear: “The United States Government will not accept or allow Transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. Military.”
The leader had cited the “tremendous medical costs and disruption that transgender in the military would entail,” though the costs of catering to transgender troops amounting to just 0.0003 percent of the military’s annual budget.
A book later alleged that Trump had privately fumed at transgender soldiers getting “clipped” before making a snap decision on the issue without consulting the Pentagon – leading to a devastating impact on trans troops and recruits.
Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz gaslights everyone over Trump trans ban
While appearing on on The View last week, Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz apparently decided the best way to defend the President’s record on the issue is to resort to the tried-and-tested Trump-era tactic of just flat-out disregarding objective fact.
Asked about the trans ban, Gaetz had said: “We shouldn’t be banning anybody based on who they are or who they love. That’s not the kind of Republican I am, and it’s not the kind of Republican the President is.”
https://twitter.com/AlexPattyy/status/1230611200087674882
The Florida lawmaker was clapped and cheered for the claim – despite his open support for banning trans people from the military in 2017.
At the time of Trump’s announcement, he shared the Fox News headline “Trump announces ban on transgender individuals serving in the military” on Twitter, adding: “This is the right thing to do!”
Republican congressman Matt Gaetz praised the Trump ban on transgender troops
Matt Gaetz actually voted to target trans troops, sparking Trump ban
Despite claiming that he is not “the kind of Republican” to target trans troops, discussions on the issue had only made it to the President’s desk in the first place after a cabal of Republican congresspeople attempted to attach an amendment targeting transgender troops to a crucial government defence funding bill.
The narrowly-defeated amendment penned by conversion therapy supporter Rep. Vicky Hartzler would have stipulated stated that “funds available to the Department of Defense may not be used to provide medical treatment related to gender transition.”
It was backed by 209 Republican lawmakers in the House of Representatives, and – you guessed it- one of them was gaslighter-in-chief Rep. Matt Gaetz.
Republican congressman Matt Gaetz literally voted to target trans troops
So the Republican lawmaker parading himself around as “not the kind of Republican” that targets trans troops, is, in fact, the guy who literally voted to do exactly that.
For someone who claims to be so invested in equality, strangely Gaetz also cast his vote against the Equality Act, to add federal discrimination protections for people based on sexual orientation and gender identity, in May 2019.
Facts are facts, America.
