As the incoming Trump administration considers defunding the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the PBS News Hour just keeps hitting the accelerator on their overwhelmingly one-sided promotion of transgenderism. On Friday night, PBS anchor William Brangham supportively interviewed transgender Minnesota state Rep. Leigh Finke (D), best known for a bill called the "Take Pride Act," trying to strip anti-pedophilia language out of the definition of sexual orientation. It would eliminate the sentence
“Sexual orientation” does not include a physical or sexual attachment to children by an adult.
The Minnesota-based blog Power Line argued "We might re-name it the 'Take Pride in Abuse of Children Act.'” The networks all ignored this controversy, although they routinely celebrate leftists in state legislatures.
None that came up as anchor Geoff Bennett began the promotional gush for transgender "rights": "William Brangham is back to talk with one recent pioneer about how she sees this current moment." A "pioneer."
Brangham described the two sides of this debate, and the conservatives were dismissed as offering "vitriol," as if there is no respectable dissent: "My guest is no stranger to both the triumphs and the vitriol surrounding transgender rights in America. Two years ago, Leigh Finke became the first trans person elected to the Minnesota state legislature. And even though she endured numerous threats, she leveraged her position and a Democratic majority to help pass legislation protecting other trans people in her state. Leigh Finke, so nice to have you on the program."
Brangham's questions were supportive and open-ended:
1. "As I said, you have been in office almost two years now, but this is a seemingly very fraught time for trans rights in this country, with this past election and all of those attacks, the first openly trans member of the U.S. Congress, and now the Supreme Court case this week. I just wonder how this is — how has this been for you the last few months?"
2. "You were here while the Supreme Court was arguing this case. That case centered around Tennessee's attempt to ban trans care for trans children. And the justices had a lot of different arguments about that case. And I wonder, listening to what they had to say, what stood out to you?"
Finke said "it is incredibly difficult to hear people finding reasons to further discriminate and alienate trans people, especially our kids."
3. "It also seemed that the justices wanted to talk about other trans-related issues, bathrooms, sports. Do you feel like this is just the beginning of an ongoing cascade?"
Finke concluded "until the conservative Republican institutions realize that this is a human — that they are hurting human people, and they are not just making hypothetical political arguments, they are going to continue."
4. "Yes, we have certainly seen those. I mean, Representative Nancy Mace here in Congress, as soon as we had a trans member of Congress, she introduces a bill to ban trans people using bathrooms that don't conform to the sex of their birth. President Trump has vowed to get trans kids out of children's sports. I mean, do you think that this is, again, just — it seems like the GOP is very interested in pursuing this issue, even though you're arguing it's not really an issue."
Finke agreed there is no issue.
5. "President-elect Trump, as you well know, spent tens of millions of dollars attacking Kamala Harris over her stance on trans rights. And some Democrats are arguing that Democrats' embrace of trans rights cost them this election. Massachusetts Congressman Seth Moulton said that the Democratic Party is — quote — "out of touch" on trans issues and said — quote — "I have two little girls. I don't want them getting run over on a playing field by a male or formerly male athlete, but, as a Democrat, I'm supposed to be afraid to say that." What do you make of that argument?"
Finke called it "despicable."
