{"id":1356090,"date":"2022-03-03T05:20:00","date_gmt":"2022-03-03T10:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1356090"},"modified":"2022-03-03T07:54:56","modified_gmt":"2022-03-03T12:54:56","slug":"republicans-thwart-pro-life-pro-woman-anti-racist-bills-in-virginias-legislature","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/republicans-thwart-pro-life-pro-woman-anti-racist-bills-in-virginias-legislature\/","title":{"rendered":"Republicans Thwart Pro-Life, Pro-Woman, Anti-Racist Bills In Virginia\u2019s Legislature"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Frepublicans-thwart-pro-life-pro-woman-anti-racist-bills-in-virginias-legislature%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1356090&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/VA-capitol-scaled-e1646269080817.jpg\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\" alt=\"image\" \/><\/div>\n<p>Bills to curtail Virginia\u2019s state-wide transgender mandates, restrict abortion, and ban teaching critical race theory in K-12 schools have all failed to pass both houses of the Virginia legislature this session. As Democrats control the Virginia Senate by a two-vote margin, that is not surprising. What<em> is<\/em> surprising is the defection of elected Republicans on bills that concern issues Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin aggressively campaigned on.<\/p>\n<p>Virginia\u2019s new governor had campaigned on opposition to critical race theory and transgender ideology. Many pundits see Democrat gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe\u2019s admission in a September <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsls.com\/news\/politics\/2021\/09\/28\/watch-live-terry-mcauliffe-glenn-youngkin-take-part-in-final-gubernatorial-debate\/\">debate<\/a> that he did not \u201cthink parents should be telling schools what they should teach\u201d as a turning point in the race.<\/p>\n<p>Current regulations <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2021\/10\/18\/mcauliffe-agrees-public-schools-should-not-tell-parents-if-their-child-is-gender-fluid\/\">require<\/a> all school boards in Virginia to adopt transgender policies similar to those of Loudoun County \u2014 policies that literally open the door to males in women\u2019s bathrooms and in females\u2019 sports. The statewide policies even encourage school districts to hide children\u2019s transgenderism from their parents by using the set of pronouns corresponding to biological sex while parents are present, and the other pronouns with children in school.<\/p>\n<p>Last May, a boy dressed in a skirt was accused of entering the ladies\u2019 restroom in a Virginia public school and forcibly sodomizing a 15-year-old girl. He was found <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalreview.com\/news\/judge-rules-loudoun-county-teen-sexually-assaulted-female-student-in-girls-bathroom\/?utm_source=email&#038;utm_medium=breaking&#038;utm_campaign=newstrack&#038;utm_term=25468804\">guilty<\/a> in juvenile court, yet, incredibly, Loudoun County Public Schools transferred the perpetrator to another school, where he allegedly sexually assaulted another student in October 2021. It is horrifying that current Virginia law forces school districts to allow males in women\u2019s bathrooms, exactly the circumstances that allowed the rape in Loudoun to occur.<\/p>\n<p>The whole tragic story came to light just weeks before Virginia\u2019s gubernatorial election that saw the first Republican governor elected in the state since 2009. It was Youngkin\u2019s forceful <a href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/homenews\/campaign\/577504-youngkin-calls-for-investigation-into-loudoun-county-school-board-amid\">denunciations<\/a> of insanity and duplicity like this in Virginia\u2019s schools, as well as his constant and <a href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20210901052416\/https:\/www.youngkinforgovernor.com\/post\/youngkin-condemns-democrats-move-to-remove-pledge-of-allegiance-fourth-of-july-from-virginia-curriculums\">early<\/a> opposition to critical race theory, that powered his rise to the governor\u2019s office. It\u2019s therefore puzzling that Republicans in the Virginia House of Delegates and Senate are thwarting Youngkin\u2019s vision.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"republicans-go-against-youngkin\">Republicans Go against Youngkin<\/h2>\n<p>Republican Delegate Carrie Coyner voted against a bill, HB <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?ses=221&#038;typ=bil&#038;val=hb988\">988<\/a>, that would allow school districts to ignore the statewide transgender mandates. As a result, the bill died in committee, thereby preventing a vote on the bill by the full House.<\/p>\n<p>A very similar bill <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?221+sum+SB20&#038;221+sum+SB20\">died<\/a> in a Virginia Senate committee, with Republican Sen. Siobhan Dunnavant not voting either for or against the bill. Dunnavant\u2019s hesitancy to support a bill eliminating the transgender mandates might be explained by her vote to <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?201+sum+SB161\">impose<\/a> the mandates in the first place in early 2020. She was joined in that dangerous decision by fellow Senate Republican and minority leader Tommy Norment and in the House by Coyner and fellow GOP delegates Glenn Davis and Robert Bloxom. (To his credit, Davis voted for HB 988 in committee this session.)<\/p>\n<p>Fortunately, Youngkin may have other avenues to reform. This year he will have five picks to the nine-member State Board of Education, which one Democratic delegate <a href=\"https:\/\/www.virginiamercury.com\/2022\/02\/15\/after-nominee-standoff-youngkin-is-poised-to-appoint-a-majority-on-the-virginia-board-of-education\/\">suspects<\/a> may rewrite the statewide transgender policies with a view to enacting Youngkin\u2019s vision. Regardless, Republican primary voters will have trouble avoiding the suspicion that their own nightmare is playing on repeat: yet another cycle of tough talk followed by mostly docile acceptance of the culture war status quo.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"crt-and-sex-ed\">CRT and Sex Ed<\/h2>\n<p>There are other worrying signs along these <a href=\"https:\/\/www.familyfoundation.org\/blog\/1a2uuha0hfelwysfuqnbzidrmg8qps\">lines<\/a>. Coyner and Republican Del. Kim Taylor could not bring themselves to vote for two bills from Del. David LaRock, <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?221+ful+HB787EH1\">one<\/a> that essentially bans the teaching of critical race theory in K-12 schools and <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?221+cab+HC10211HB0789+RCHB1\">another<\/a> that would require parents to positively opt into sexual education (Coyner voted <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?221+vot+HV0949+HB0787\">against<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?221+vot+HV0950+HB0789\">both<\/a>). When a similar CRT-ban <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?ses=221&#038;typ=bil&#038;val=sb570\">bill<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wric.com\/news\/politics\/capitol-connection\/virginia-senate-democrats-reject-bills-to-ban-inherently-divisive-teaching-concepts-help-expand-charter-schools\/\">died<\/a> in a Senate committee, Dunnavant and fellow Senate Republican David Suetterlein missed the <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?221+vot+S04V0071+SB0570\">vote<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Regrettably, a <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?ses=221&#038;typ=bil&#038;val=hb1126\">bill<\/a> from Del. John Avoli that would require students to use school facilities consistent with their biological sex, thereby preventing another Loudoun County-like incident, has not received a vote in committee. This session, Coyner <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?ses=221&#038;typ=bil&#038;val=hb775&#038;submit=GO&#038;eType=EmailBlastContent&#038;eId=d2311d20-17bc-4992-aae6-bfc3228702a4\">also<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?221+vot+HV0726+HB0775\">voted<\/a> in favor of a bill permitting governors to close churches during a pandemic and, along with Bloxom, voted against <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?ses=221&#038;typ=bil&#038;val=hb511&#038;submit=GO&#038;eType=EmailBlastContent&#038;eId=d2311d20-17bc-4992-aae6-bfc3228702a4\">homeschoolers<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?221+vot+HV0632+HB0511\">being<\/a> able to join public school sports teams. <\/p>\n<p>Sens. Norment, Dunnanvant, Jill Vogel, and Jen Kiggans, all Republicans, voted for a <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?221+vot+SV0502SJ0005+SJ0005\">constitutional<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?ses=221&#038;typ=bil&#038;val=sj5&#038;eType=EmailBlastContent&#038;eId=d2311d20-17bc-4992-aae6-bfc3228702a4\">amendment<\/a> that eliminates the requirement that marriage be between one man and one woman and whose passage could pave the way for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.familyfoundation.org\/blog\/1a2uuha0hfelwysfuqnbzidrmg8qps\">polygamy<\/a> in Virginia. The constitutional amendment thankfully just died in a House committee.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"abortion-laws\">Abortion Laws<\/h2>\n<p>It was also disappointing to see that Youngkin\u2019s day-one legislative <a href=\"https:\/\/www.governor.virginia.gov\/media\/governorvirginiagov\/governor-of-virginia\/pdf\/GOVERNOR-YOUNGKIN%C3%A2%C2%80%C2%99S-DAY-ONE-GAME-PLAN.pdf\">agenda<\/a> did not include any language on restricting abortion, as Youngkin waged a strong pro-life campaign, going so far as to oppose abortions for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalreview.com\/corner\/youngkin-pledges-to-work-tirelessly-to-protect-babies-capable-of-feeling-pain-from-abortion\/\">children<\/a> who feel pain (at least as early as <a href=\"https:\/\/erlc.com\/resource-library\/articles\/study-shows-preborn-babies-feel-pain-as-early-as-12-weeks-gestation\/\">12 weeks<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>A bill from Republican Sen. Amanda Chase to ban abortions after 20 weeks died in committee earlier this <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/abortion-health-rob-bell-virginia-f7e2cba799a61e519cc9af7a64d769e5\">month<\/a>. However, it appears the Virginia Senate has the votes to pass the bill. Only one Democrat senator is needed to ensure passage, and Democrat Sen. Joe Morrissey has already voiced his support. <\/p>\n<p>The Republicans can try to force a vote on the floor by using \u201ca long-shot procedural move,\u201d according to the Associated Press, but Senate Minority Leader Norment said he is \u201cInstitutionally\u2026 opposed to discharging committees.\u201d Republican Del. Rob Bell, the chairman of the committee with jurisdiction over the bill in the House, where Republicans outnumber Democrats, said \u201cthere is no path forward for this bill,\u201d even though that appears not to be the case. As only <a href=\"https:\/\/richmond.com\/updated-virginia-has-become-the-epicenter-of-the-third-trimester-abortion-debate-there-have-been\/article_c3c93e87-5db3-53a7-a1a5-7bddc0bfbeb7.html\">1.3 percent<\/a> of Virginia abortions occur after 20 weeks, this bill is hardly a tall order.<\/p>\n<p>Republican Speaker Todd Gilbert does not seem willing to expend much political capital on the pro-life cause either. In response to a question directly after the election about his party\u2019s plans to combat abortion, he oddly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.virginiamercury.com\/2021\/11\/04\/gop-agenda-takes-shape-in-richmond\/\">seemed<\/a> to claim pro-life issues played a minimal part in the election. \u201cYou didn\u2019t hear our caucus running on those things\u2026 We\u2019re going to stay focused on the things we believe the majority of Virginians want us to focus on.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>This is curious coming from the same man who once <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalreview.com\/corner\/virginia-bill-would-legalize-abortion-up-to-birth\/\">baited<\/a> Democrat Del. Kathy Tran to infamously admit in 2019 that a bill she sponsored would allow abortions right up until the moment of birth and that prompted Gov. Ralph Northam shortly thereafter to come out in favor of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2019\/01\/31\/politics\/ralph-northam-third-trimester-abortion\/index.html\">infanticide<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"republicans-need-to-keep-their-credibility\">Republicans Need to Keep Their Credibility<\/h2>\n<p>But all is not doom and gloom. Republicans have managed to stay united and enact into law two important <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?221+sum+SB656\">bills<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.virginiamercury.com\/blog-va\/virginia-lawmakers-approve-more-oversight-of-sexually-explicit-classroom-materials\/\">allowing<\/a> parents to opt out of sexually explicit instruction and <a href=\"https:\/\/lis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?ses=221&#038;typ=bil&#038;val=sb739&#038;submit=GO&#038;eType=EmailBlastContent&#038;eId=d2311d20-17bc-4992-aae6-bfc3228702a4\">mask<\/a> mandates. The House of Delegates has also passed a number of other <a href=\"https:\/\/www.familyfoundation.org\/blog\/1a2uuha0hfelwysfuqnbzidrmg8qps\">bills<\/a> protecting religious liberty in vaccination and other <a href=\"https:\/\/default.salsalabs.org\/T3fb94a43-2304-4c09-b398-8a0d7c26c866\/5820b439-06cf-4371-856a-1246fc048311\">settings<\/a> and imposing modest but important abortion restrictions. Alas, most of these bills are just sitting in the Senate.<\/p>\n<p>On his first day in office, Youngkin sidestepped the legislature and issued an executive <a href=\"https:\/\/www.governor.virginia.gov\/media\/governorvirginiagov\/governor-of-virginia\/pdf\/74---eo\/74---eo\/EO-1---ENDING-THE-USE-OF-INHERENTLY-DIVISIVE-CONCEPTS,-INCLUDING-CRITICAL-RACE-THEORY,-AND-RESTORING-EXCELLEN.pdf\">order<\/a> that mandates Virginia\u2019s education agency identify and ban \u201cdivisive concepts\u201d like critical race theory in K-12 public schools. Hopefully, the order has the teeth to make the failed legislation on this topic unnecessary (until another Democrat takes the governor\u2019s office and reverses it).<\/p>\n<p>In Virginia\u2019s House of Delegates Republicans outnumber Democrats 52-48, while in the Virginia Senate, Democrats outnumber Republican 21-19. This discrepancy partially explains the legislature\u2019s uneven record on pro-life and pro-family legislation \u2014 but only partially. Republican defections, despite a clear pro-family mandate in 2021, are playing a role too, risking the party\u2019s credibility with pro-lifers and parents who voted to end racist and radical transgender policies in Virginia\u2019s public schools.<\/p>\n<p>With the divided legislature, \u201cfailure\u201d is too strong a description of the lack of pro-family, pro-parent legislative accomplishments this session. But a good place to start for Youngkin is by impressing on timid legislative Republicans that his historic election upset turned on precisely the same issues that have induced their timidity: cultural flashpoints on which the left took deeply harmful positions, and which Virginia voters emphatically rejected last November.<\/p>\n<p>Parents and families are watching. Primaries are right around the corner.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\" \/>\n<p>\n  Nick Bell served as deputy director at the Center for Faith and Opportunity Initiatives at the Department of Education during the Trump administration.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Bills to curtail Virginia\u2019s state-wide transgender mandates, restrict abortion, and ban teaching critical race theory in K-12 schools have all failed to pass both houses of the Virginia legislature this<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1356090","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1356090","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1356090"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1356090\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1356090"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1356090"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1356090"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}