‘They’re Losers’: Pelosi Reacts To GOP Focus On Trans Issues

Nancy Pelosi Condemns Republicans Pursuing Transgender-Focused Laws

House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) has condemned Republicans who have pursued transgender-focused laws, calling them “losers.”

LGBT news site The Advocate published on Monday an “edited and condensed version” of a conversation showing the author telling Pelosi that many members of the LGBTQ+ community are scared given all the hateful legislation in state Houses all over the country, and all the dangerous rhetoric by Republicans.

“Here’s what I think. I think they’re losers. They’re losers,” Pelosi said, before broadening her critique to gun rights and abortion access.

What Republicans Are Losing On

• Gun rights
• Women’s right to choose
• Transgender-focused laws

Republican-led states across the country have implemented laws or policies that crack down on sex-change-related treatment for minors, which proponents say protects children while critics argue the rules attack “gender-affirming” care. GOP-led states have also moved to block transgender athletes from participating in female sports and prevent minors from being able to attend drag performances over concerns about sexually explicit content.

On the federal level, without the support of any Democrats, the GOP-controlled House voted last month to stop male athletes who identify as females from competing on girls’ and women’s school sports teams. The proposed ban, which targets federally-funded educational institutions, is unlikely to be enacted with the Senate and White House in control of the Democrats.

Pelosi, who has made headlines in recent years for her appearances on the “RuPaul’s Drag Race” show, went on to agree with the author’s assertion that what Republicans are doing is “frightening.”

“It is frightening. Because it’s about hate. When we did the hate crimes legislation, now this was a number of years ago, and we had the majority, we couldn’t get the bills to come to the floor, and to be able to vote on it on the floor,” Pelosi said.

“And so, people came to me and said, If you take out trans, you can pass the bill in one minute,” Pelosi continued. “I said, if we take out trans, we’re not passing the bill, because I’m not taking out trans. That’s just the way it is. Now this was probably like 2008 and 2009, so it’s a while ago, but here we are again today. We just must be really forceful in speaking out.”