News
Rep. Hartzler wants another shot at anti-trans military amendment
Missouri Republican wants inclusion of measure in spending package
Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-Mo.) is seeking another shot at barring funds for transition-related case in the U.S. military
(Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key)
Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-Mo.) is looking for another shot at her amendment that would have barred the Pentagon from paying for transition-related health care for transgender service members, according to Politico.
In the aftermath of the U.S. House narrowly rejecting the amendment as part of the fiscal year 2008 defense authorization bill, Hartzler is reportedly leading “a mix of GOP defense hawks and conservatives” to include the measure in a different spending bill that will soon arrive on the floor.
“Steps must be taken to address this misuse of our precious defense dollars,” Hartzler said in a statement to Politico. “This policy hurts our military’s readiness and will take over a billion dollars from the Department of Defense’s budget. This is still an important issue that needs to be addressed.”
As introduced by Hartzler the last time around, the amendment would prohibit the Pentagon from made expenditures in its health system for transition-related care, including hormone therapy and gender reassignment surgery, for both service members and their dependents.
According Politico, supporters of the amendment are urging House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) to use a procedural trick to include the amendment automatically as part of the spending bill. Failing that, they’re requesting another floor vote on the amendment as part of consideration for the base bill.
The House last week voted down the Hartler amendment by a 214-209. Twenty-four Republicans and all 190 Democrats present voted against the measure.
According to Politico, most Republicans expected the Hartzler amendment to pass overwhelmingly and were surprised when it failed. (Ryan told the Washington Blade during his news conference he supported the measure and predicted it would pass.) The morning after the defeat of the amendment, Republicans spent a good chuck of a closed-door GOP conference meeting harping about what happened, the Politico reported.
Conceivably, the measure could pass the second time around. Six Republican last time didn’t vote or were absent (including House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, who’s recovering from a gun shot wound). Rep Brian Mast (R-Fla.), who voted against the provision, has since said his vote was in error and he meant to vote for it.
Caroline Boothe, a House Rules Committee spokesperson, said Hartzler hasn’t yet submitted an amendment for potential consideration as part of the defense appropriations bill.
“We have yet to receive the Hartzler amendment again for the bills next week,” Boothe said. “But when we do, the Committee will consider it like we do any other amendments.”
According to Politico, senior Republican sources predicted leadership would deny the request to add Hartzler amendment’s to a House rule because it would circumvent regular order. Whether a separate floor amendment on the proposal would be allowed is unclear.
Openly transgender service has been the rule for the U.S. military for about a year in the aftermath of an Obama-era policy change that lifted the regulatory ban on their service. Transgender people can come out in the military without fear of discharge, but openly transgender people still can’t enlist. Defense Secretary James Mattis pushed back the target date for that change until Jan. 1 pending a review of transgender service.
Media outlets reported when Hartzler offered her around last week, Mattis privately contacted her to urge her to withdraw the measure. White House Director of Legislative Affairs Marc Short denied the White House whipped a “no” vote on the measure, although he said there was a question about whether it should be include in the defense authorization bill.
Aaron Belkin, director of the San Francisco-based Palm Center, blasted Hartzler in a statement for not giving up on her amendment, accusing of inventing false data to bolster her case against transgender military service.
“Thousands of transgender troops have been serving for an entire year, and they have been widely praised by Commanders,” Belkin said, “and 18 foreign militaries allow transgender personnel to serve. Transgender military service works, and pretending that it does not requires inventing data. This is the same, discredited strategy that opponents used to prop up the failed ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy the first time around.”
Read more at Politico.
District of Columbia
Mayor Bowser signs bill requiring insurers to cover PrEP
‘This is a win in the fight against HIV/AIDS’
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser on March 20 signed a bill approved by the D.C. Council that requires health insurance companies to cover the costs of HIV prevention or PrEP drugs for D.C. residents at risk for HIV infection.
Like all legislation approved by the Council and signed by the mayor, the bill, called the PrEP D.C. Amendment Act, was sent to Capitol Hill for a required 30-day congressional review period before it takes effect as D.C. law.
Gay D.C. Council member Zachary Parker (D-Ward 5) last year introduced the bill.
Insurance coverage for PrEP drugs has been provided through coverage standards included in the Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare. But AIDS advocacy organizations have called on states and D.C. to pass their own legislation requiring insurance coverage of PrEP as a safeguard in case federal policies are weakened or removed by the Trump administration, which has already reduced federal funding for HIV/AIDS-related programs.
Like legislation passed by other states, the PrEP D.C. Amendment Act requires insurers to cover all PrEP drugs approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Studies have shown that PrEP drugs, which can be taken as pills or by injection just twice a year, are highly effective in preventing HIV infection.
“I think this is a win for our community,” Parker said after the D.C. Council voted unanimously to approve the bill on its first vote on the measure in February. “And this is a win in the fight against HIV/AIDS.”
Vice President JD Vance and his wife, second lady Usha Vance, will visit Hungary next week.
An announcement the White House released on Thursday said the Vances will be in Budapest, the Hungarian capital, from April 7-8.
JD Vance “will hold bilateral meetings with” Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. The announcement further indicates the vice president “will also deliver remarks on the rich partnership between the United States and Hungary.”
The Vances will travel to Hungary less than a week before the country’s parliamentary elections take place on April 12.
Orbán, who has been in office since 2010, and his Fidesz-KDNP coalition government have faced widespread criticism over its anti-LGBTQ crackdown.
The Associated Press notes polls indicate Orbán is trailing Péter Magyar and his center-right Tisza party.
President Donald Trump removed Attorney General Pam Bondi from her post Thursday, following growing criticism over how she and the Department of Justice handled a range of issues, including matters related to sex offender and Trump ally Jeffrey Epstein.
Trump announced Bondi’s removal on Truth Social, where he also said Todd Blanche will serve as acting head of the Justice Department.
“Pam Bondi is a great American patriot and a loyal friend, who faithfully served as my attorney general over the past year,” Trump wrote on the platform. “Pam did a tremendous job overseeing a massive crackdown on crime across our country, with murders plummeting to their lowest level since 1900.”
Trump was seen as recently as Wednesday with the now-former attorney general at a Supreme Court hearing on citizenship.
The decision contrasts with Trump’s previous public praise of Bondi, the 87th U.S. attorney general and former 37th attorney general of Florida, who served in that role from 2011-2019 before joining the Trump-Vance administration. He has frequently lauded her loyalty and said he speaks with her often. Bondi was also one of president’s defense lawyers during his first impeachment trial.
Privately, however, Trump had grown frustrated that Bondi was not “moving quickly enough” to prosecute critics and political adversaries he wanted to face criminal charges, according to multiple sources. The New York Times reported that her inability to charge former FBI Director James B. Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James with any crimes is a large factor in the president’s choice to fire her from the government’s primary law enforcement agency.
The move comes as Trump has sought to minimize public turmoil within his administration, avoiding the perception of a revolving-door Cabinet that defined his first term.
Lee Zeldin, a former Republican congressman from New York who unsuccessfully ran for governor, has emerged as a leading contender to lead the Justice Department. He has been one of Trump’s most reliable allies.
“He’s our secret weapon,” Trump said of Zeldin in February during a White House event promoting the coal industry, adding, “He’s getting those approvals done in record-setting time.”
Bondi has also growing faced scrutiny from Congress.
The House Oversight Committee recently subpoenaed her to testify about the department’s handling of certain files, where she declined to answer key questions during a contentious House Judiciary Committee hearing in February.
The Tampa native has a long history of opposing LGBTQ rights through her roles in government. As Florida attorney general, she fought against the legalization of same-sex marriage, arguing it would cause “serious public harm,” pushing forward a legal battle that cost taxpayers nearly half a million dollars. She also asked the Florida Supreme Court to overturn a lower court ruling that found the state’s same-sex marriage ban unconstitutional.
More recently, Bondi established a “Title IX Special Investigations Team” within the Justice Department focused on restricting transgender women and girls from participating in women’s and girls’ sports teams and accessing facilities aligned with their gender identity. She also told Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia to turn over the medical records of anyone under 19 who received gender-affirming care.
Her removal follows Trump’s decision last month to oust another controversial female Cabinet figure, Kristi Noem.
Mayor Bowser signs bill requiring insurers to cover PrEP
JD Vance to travel to Hungary next week
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