Congress
House spending bills once again include anti-LGBTQ riders
163 House members wrote to Biden over ‘hijacked’ appropriations process
A letter to President Joe Biden and Democratic congressional leadership sent on Wednesday by 163 members of the U.S. House of Representatives, including Congressional Equality Caucus Chair Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) and the eight other openly LGBTQ co-chairs, objects to Republican members’ efforts to “hijack the appropriations process to restrict the rights and fundamental freedoms of LGBTQI+ people.”
With the Nov. 17 funding deadline looming, the letter argues, “These members lack the votes and public support to pass their anti-LGBTQI+ agenda into law as standalone bills, so they are working to include them in must-pass funding legislation.”
These total more than 40, according to the letter, which specifies they fall largely within four categories:
- Gender-Affirming Care Ban Riders: These riders would restrict access to evidence-based, medically necessary care for transgender people or eliminate funding to organizations that provide such care.
- License to Discriminate Riders: These riders would create a license for people and organizations—including those receiving taxpayer funds—to discriminate against LGBTQI+ people under the guise of religious liberty, and they prevent the federal government from adequately responding. For example, they prohibit the federal government from reducing or terminating a federal contract or grant with an organization that discriminates against LGBTQI+ people if the organization justifies their discrimination based on the belief that marriage should only be between a man and a woman.
- Pride Flag Riders: These riders would prohibit funds from being used to fly pride flags at covered facilities.
- DEI EO Riders: These riders would prohibit funds from being used to implement, administer, apply, enforce, or carry out three LGBTQI-inclusive Executive Orders (EO Nos. 13985, 14035, and 14091) meant to ensure the federal workforce is an inclusive and affirming workplace for employees with marginalized identities.
Also on Wednesday, Pocan issued a statement on behalf of the Caucus objecting to the House’s passage of H.R. 4364, the Legislative Branch Appropriations Act.
“In 2013, I had to fight for my marriage to be recognized so my husband could receive his House Spouse ID,” the Wisconsin Democrat wrote.
“Now, a decade later, Republicans are using this bill to bring us back to a time where Legislative Branch employees and contractors can discriminate against me and other members and staff in same-sex marriages.”
Then, on Friday, a Democratic aligned group called the House Accountability War Room issued a statement objecting to passage of the Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, H.R.4821.
Among others, the group highlighted provisions prohibiting “discriminatory action against a person” based on their “sincerely held religious belief, or moral conviction, that marriage is, or should be recognized as, a union of one man and one woman.”
Congress
HRC president campaigns for Chris Pappas in NH
Gay congressman running to succeed retiring U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen
Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson on Sunday campaigned for U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.) in New Hampshire.
Robinson traveled to Manchester, the state’s largest city, nine days before the Sept. 8 primary that will determine who will vie for retiring U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)’s seat.
We’re hitting the pavement across New Hampshire to fight for a freer, fairer future for everyone.
Glad to have Human Rights Campaign President @KelleyJRobinson join us for a canvass launch in Manchester today. pic.twitter.com/XWCEaQxy4o
— Chris Pappas (@ChrisPappasNH) August 30, 2026
Former U.S. Sen. John E. Sununu, who represented New Hampshire in the U.S. Senate from 2003-2009, will face off against former U.S. Sen. Scott Brown, who represented Massachusetts in the U.S. Senate from 2010-2013, in the Republican primary.
Karishma Manzur is among the Democrats challenging Pappas.
A poll the University of New Hampshire Survey Center released on Aug. 26 shows Sununu is ahead of Brown. The same survey shows Pappas ahead of Manzur and his other Democratic challengers.
The UNH Survey Center poll shows Sununu ahead of Pappas by a 45-43 percent margin if they were to face off in the general election. The margin of error is +/-2.1 percent.
Pappas would become the first openly gay man elected to the U.S. Senate if he were to win in November.
Congress
Chris Van Hollen says the Democratic Party needs change. Is he the one to lead it?
Senator is backing anti-establishment Democrats across the country
By LEE O. SANDERLIN | The Democratic Party is having something of an identity crisis — losing to President Donald Trump twice in three elections will do that.
Should the party embrace anti-establishment figures who espouse progressive policy ideas like Medicare for all and rhetoric about unrigging the economy for the 1 percent? Or should Democrats try to appeal to moderates who want to return to semi-normalcy in a time of political upheaval?
Although he’s been in Congress since 2002, with key leadership roles throughout his tenure, Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen, 67, counts himself firmly in the anti-establishment camp.
The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
Congress
House blocks effort to codify transgender servicemember ban into law
Lawmakers approved two anti-trans NDAA amendments
The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday rejected an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act that would have codified a ban transgender servicemembers in the military.
The bipartisan vote was 212-217.
The NDAA is for the 2027 fiscal year and sets policies for the Defense Department programs and activities and the national security programs of the Department of Energy.
U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) proposed the amendment on July 21. It stated that all personnel are required to serve in accordance with their biological sex, citing military readiness and discipline.
Human Rights Campaign Senior Director of Government Affairs Jennifer Pike Bailey stated that she is grateful for the bipartisan vote that rejected President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s “dangerous and discriminatory policy that has kicked brave transgender servicemembers out of the military and weakened our national security.”
“Everyone who meets the same rigorous standards should be able to serve their country. We should honor that patriotism, particularly in this moment where we are witnessing brave servicemembers making the ultimate sacrifice for our country, instead of ending their careers and politicizing their existence. We’re grateful that a permanent extension of this ban failed, and we will keep fighting to reverse this senseless policy,” Bailey said.
Mark Takano, chair of the Congressional Equality Caucus, stated that he and his members put in countless hours of work to kill the amendment.
“When Americans know they or their families are going to be targeted by or not supported by the military, that leads them to avoid signing up to serve or staying in the service — making it harder to keep the ranks of the armed services full and our nation safe. My colleagues in the Equality Caucus and I will continue working to prevent these attacks on our servicemembers and their families from becoming law,” Takano said.
According to the Congressional Equality Caucus, two other bills could potentially be passed that would also target the transgender community, both of which were proposed by U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.).
The first was a bill that would have prohibited gender-related medical care under TRICARE and to prevent TRICARE from covering certain gender-related medical procedures and treatments, which was approved in a vote of 219-208.
The second was a bill that would have prohibited male participation in female sports at DoDEA schools. DoDEA schools are Department of Defense Dependents Schools, which is a network of primary and secondary schools.
The amendment was approved in a vote of 221-203.
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