Congress

Hard-liners balk at GOP’s failure to enshrine anti-transgender laws

Published

5 minutes ago

June 1, 2026

GOP hard-liners who promised voters they’d use their new majority in Washington to enact anti-trans legislation are increasingly frustrated their leaders don’t seem to share the same commitment.

A record number of bills that would roll back access to health care, sports participation and military service for transgender individuals have been introduced over the last year and a half after Republicans spent tens of millions of dollars campaigning on the issue in 2024.

The party has struggled, however, to get more than a handful to President Donald Trump’s desk, and some Republicans worry the weak showing could deflate red state voters come November as the GOP fights to keep control of Congress.

These members are now looking toward legislative packages — like the annual defense policy bill or party-line budget reconciliation bills — as their last chance to codify restrictions on the trans community this year. But leaders are still not making the issues a priority, they say.

“It just amazes me that they aren’t listening on this issue, I really don’t understand that,” Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) said in a recent interview.

Hawley has failed to convince leaders to attach a provision in the current immigration enforcement-focused reconciliation bill that would defund Planned Parenthood, which offers gender-affirming care he called “risky” and “dangerous” for children.

While he successfully zeroed out Medicaid funding for the health care provider in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act — one of the few anti-transgender measures Congress has enacted — that provision will expire in July, upping the pressure to get it reauthorized.

“I’ve absolutely been telling [leaders] I want this in the next bill because taxpayer money shouldn’t be funding transgender treatment for minors,” added Hawley, who is now looking ahead to the potential third reconciliation bill the party could advance later this year.

U.S. medical associations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, support gender-affirming care for adolescents.

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) has introduced a bill that would bar funding from entities that allow individuals to use single-sex restrooms or locker rooms that don’t match their sex assigned at birth. Asked why that measure hasn’t moved through the House, Mace said in an interview, “It’s a great question for the speaker.”

A spokesperson for Speaker Mike Johnson’s office noted that besides last year’s health care funding limitation, measures blocking trans women from joining women’s sports teams at military universities and cutting some diversity, equity and inclusion program initiatives have also successfully been enacted as part of the latest defense authorization bill.

And three GOP bills have passed the House this Congress, including former Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s (R-Ga.) bill to establish criminal penalties for performing or providing gender-affirming care to minors.

A person familiar with Senate Majority Leader John Thune’s thinking, granted anonymity to speak candidly, disputed the claim that he doesn’t share the same urgency for anti-trans action as ultraconservatives, pointing to the South Dakota Republican’s moves to bring related GOP measures to the floor and attributing their failure to a lack of bipartisan support necessary to clear 60-vote procedural hurdles.

That roadblock has been the source of growing calls from frustrated conservatives for Thune to push through a Senate rules change to allow more bills to pass by a simple majority — a drastic action he opposes and says he lacks the votes to achieve.

“I’ve called on Thune to nuke the filibuster. It has to be done,” said Rep. Greg Steube (R-Fla.). “There’s no other way conservative legislation like this passes.”

Steube introduced a bill, which passed the House last January, that would prohibit schools receiving federal funding from allowing trans girls to play on female sports teams. Senate Democrats have four times defeated a similar measure introduced by Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), most recently as an amendment to a stalled partisan elections bill known as the SAVE America Act.

“At some point it does get frustrating that we’re not doing every single thing we can get done,” Rep. Burgess Owens (R-Utah) recently complained. “And until somebody picks this up and says ‘I am going to be a true advocate,’ then we have no way of pushing it any further.”

Owens co-sponsored a measure that passed the House before the recent weeklong recess that would strip federal funds from public schools that alter a student’s name or pronouns in their records without parental permission.

Conservative Republicans started 2025 eager to capitalize on an issue that, in the lead-up to the 2024 election, appeared to galvanize voters. House and Senate Republicans and their affiliated campaign arms unleashed over $110 million in ads on issues such as rejecting gender-affirming care for minors and banning transgender women from participating in women’s and girls’ sports, according to AdImpact data.

Trump, in the closing days of his presidential campaign, spent more on ads criticizing Vice President Kamala Harris for supporting rights for transgender people than on any other subject.

House and Senate Republicans sought to ride the perceived wave of public opinion by introducing record levels of legislation they say are designed to protect the rights of women and girls and shield taxpayers from paying for gender-affirming care they call harmful and exploitative of minors.

Gallup polling before and after the election found that 69 percent of U.S. adults believe that transgender athletes should only be allowed to play on sports teams that match their birth sex. Still, advocates counter that 85 percent of Americans surveyed believe transgender people should have the same rights as everyone else, according to the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest LGBTQ+ rights group.

More than 125 anti-transgender measures were introduced in 2026 alone — up from 109 in 2025 and 88 in 2024, according to counts from Trans Legislation Tracker, a research organization monitoring state and national bills that impact trans and gender-diverse people across the country.

But few of Congress’ legislative efforts have crossed the finish line.

Republicans have been foiled by mobilization from Democrats, who largely argue such restrictions amount to gender discrimination that contributes to serious considerations of suicide among two thirds of transgender youth. Democrats were also able to strip more than 40 “anti-LBGTQ+ riders” from annual government funding bills for the current fiscal year, according to the nearly-200 member Congressional Equality Caucus.

“Every time an anti-LGBTQI+ bill or amendment comes to the floor, members of the Congressional Equality Caucus organize a response and whip as hard as we can against them,” Caucus Chair Mark Takano (D-Calif.) said in a statement.

Meanwhile, despite the GOP’s lack of progress in Congress, White House executive actions and GOP-controlled legislatures have enacted a soaring number of anti-trans policies.

Trump, within the first days of his second administration, signed executive orders to: declare the government would only recognize two sexes, male and female; withhold federal funding for institutions that deliver gender-affirming care to minors; and ban transgender people from the military, among other efforts.

Before Trump started his second term, transgender women had been allowed to compete in women’s categories in the Olympics since 2003 and the NCAA since 2010.

At least 50 anti-trans bills have passed this year alone in red states like Florida, Tennessee, Utah, Kansas and Idaho. And states overall have passed more than 350 anti-trans bills since 2021.

The real-world impact of these efforts has jeopardized the mental and physical wellbeing of transgender individuals, many of whom have also faced violent threats as the issue becomes more deeply politicized, advocates say.

And since most major U.S. medical organizations say gender-affirming care is well-tested, safe and can be medically necessary, many parents of transgender minors have been forced to make a difficult choice: watch their child grapple with what can be extreme distress or move their families to less restrictive states or outside of the U.S to continue care that has been blocked or restricted.

“It would be a mistake to measure the threat to transgender Americans solely by what has or hasn’t passed Congress,” said David Stacy, vice president of government affairs at the Human Rights Campaign.

“The Trump administration has used executive overreach to dismantle hard-won protections, and state legislatures across the country are moving in lockstep.”

Back on Capitol Hill, Republicans insist that codifying some of these policies nationwide is important, while conceding the reality of doing so before November is unlikely.

“Look, it’s absurd that we allow men in women’s sports in our society when I think the vast majority of Americans don’t support it either,” said Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis). “But are we going to get something done this legislative session? Time’s running out, to be honest.”

House Republicans have already packed at least 18 anti-LGBTQ+ policy riders in partisan versions of fiscal 2027 appropriations bills that Democrats are eyeing for removal, according to the Congressional Equality Caucus, and some GOP lawmakers aren’t interested in the risks involved in fighting for the survival of these partisan provisions.

“You could just run out of runway,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) said in an interview. “And we’ve got to prioritize. If I’ve got a choice between some of those [trans] issues and getting the NDAA and farm bill out, then I’ve got to favor NDAA and farm bill.”

Congress

Florida Democrat Frederica Wilson not running for reelection

Published

3 days ago

May 29, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

MIAMI GARDENS, Florida — Rep. Frederica Wilson, a Democrat from Florida known for championing education causes and expanding opportunities for Black communities, announced Friday she will not seek reelection.

During a street-naming ceremony in her honor next to the elementary school where she once served as principal, the 83-year-old said, “This has been a journey. But it’s time. It’s time.”

“I know all of you are saying, ‘What is the congresswoman going to do?’ Well, the congresswoman is going to not seek another term,” she said to a collective “aw” from the crowd gathered.

Wilson’s announcement makes her the latest in a line of aging members of Congress to choose not to run again ahead of November’s midterm elections. It also comes amid growing challenges to Black political power in the wake of the Supreme Court’s ruling gutting the Voting Rights Act. As Republicans rush to redraw congressional maps ahead of this year’s midterm elections, the Congressional Black Caucus — of which Wilson is a member — is poised to lose up to one-third of its members.

Florida earlier this month approved a new map heavily favoring Republicans, though Wilson’s Miami-based district remains a blue stronghold. State Sen. Shevrin Jones, a Democrat from Miami Gardens, announced Wednesday he wouldn’t be running for reelection for the Legislature in November. He is seen as one of the lead contenders for Wilson’s seat and would be the first openly gay member of Congress from Florida if elected.

Wilson is one of the most recognizable members of the House, known for a distinctive style that includes brightly colored clothing and matching cowboy hats. She had previously denied rumors that she was retiring, calling them “crazy.”

“I’m almost distraught,” she told Axios last week. “It’s not true. I am still planning on running.”

Wilson then conducted an exclusive interview with the Miami Herald that published Friday, in which she explained she’d tried to be “politically strategic” about her announcement given GOP redistricting. She added that she felt the weight of the decision given that her predecessor was Carrie Meek, a Black leader, saying, “I didn’t want to gamble on this seat being taken away from us.”

“I figured if I announced that I was retiring, what would the Legislature and the governor do? What would they say? Would District 24 be an easy target because Frederica is no longer there? I’m a strong candidate,” she said. “With me not here, would that weaken the survival of District 24?”

She also told the Herald that she wasn’t ready to endorse a successor yet but indicated she would be vetting candidates to make a decision.

The street-naming ceremony honoring Wilson on Friday featured numerous Miami-Dade County officials from both parties, with a packed audience gathered under a tent next to an elementary school named after the lawmaker. She wore a light pink suit with rhinestone embellishments and a cowboy hat to the event and said when she took the stage that the ceremony represented a “bookend” to her political career.

She also joked that the elementary school named after her would be easy to find now because it was on a street also named after her.

Speakers repeatedly raised her mentoring program for boys of color, which began when she was a school board member and is known as the “5000 Role Models of Excellence Project.” It has helped thousands of men obtain higher education degrees. Wilson said Friday she would be traveling across the U.S. to spread the program in other parts of the country.

“A street just isn’t enough,” said Miami-Dade County Commissioner Oliver Gilbert, who is also among the names talked about for the seat, while praising her work on youth mentorship in the state. “We’re here because you’re not just an elected official — there are a lot of elected officials — not just a leader; you’re a living legend.”

Miami-Dade County Commission Vice Chair Kionne McGhee also took the stage and talked about how Wilson’s mentorship program changed his life. “It was this woman who looked at young boys who were told that they would never amount to anything and told them that they too can walk the halls of Congress — and not only walk the halls of Congress but effectuate policies that would dictate the future of their children,” he said.

Wilson, whose district encompasses parts of Miami-Dade and Broward counties, has served since first winning election in 2010. She previously worked as a teacher, principal, school board member and in the Legislature, where she overlapped with now-Secretary of State Marco Rubio — whom she called a “dear, dear friend” — and pushed to require Florida public schools to teach African American history. She spoke extensively about her experience during Friday’s event.

She has served as the ranking Democrat on the House Transportation Water Resources and Environment Subcommittee and as a member of the House Education and Workforce Committee.

Following the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers in 2020, Wilson introduced legislation to create the U.S. Commission on the Social Status of Black Men and Boys and later served as the agency’s chair.

During President Donald Trump’s first term, Wilson criticized the president as insensitive after a call he made to the widow of a South Florida soldier killed in Niger.

Congress

Mike Johnson’s longtime chief of staff to depart in June

Published

3 days ago

May 29, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Hayden Haynes, Speaker Mike Johnson’s longtime chief of staff, will leave the job in June, Johnson’s office confirmed Friday.

Haynes will be replaced by Garrett Fultz, Johnson’s deputy chief of staff.

Haynes has been by Johnson’s side for all of his key achievements since ascending to the speakership in 2023, including the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, a sweeping domestic megabill considered the signature legislative accomplishment of President Donald Trump’s second term. The bill made it through the House by just a single vote last summer.

But his time in Johnson’s office has not been without controversy. In March 2025, he was arrested for a DUI on the night of Trump’s joint address to Congress. Haynes pleaded not guilty the following month.

Johnson stood by his top aide.

“I’ve worked with him,” he told reporters after Haynes’ arrest. “He’s trusted and respected. And he has my full faith and confidence.”

Punchbowl News first reported Haynes’ imminent departure.

Congress

Bondi defends DOJ’s handling of Epstein files to members of Congress

Published

3 days ago

May 29, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Former Attorney General Pam Bondi defended the administration’s handling of the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files in closed door remarks Friday, amid bipartisan criticism of botched redactions in the millions of pages that were made public during her tenure.

“There were redaction errors,” Bondi acknowledged, according to her prepared opening statement to members of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee obtained by Blue Light News. “But since day one of this process, this Department has been committed to accountability and transparency.”

She continued, “Our stance has always been that the Department stands ready to review any potential evidence of criminal activity related to Epstein and his associates and would pursue appropriate investigative or prosecutorial action wherever the facts and law warrant.”

She also said she delegated oversight of the Epstein files release process to her then-deputy, Todd Blanche, who is now acting attorney general.

Bondi is on Capitol Hill for a transcribed interview with the House Oversight Committee as part of the panel’s ongoing investigation into the late, convicted sex offender. She specifically is being asked to speak about the DOJ’s compliance, or lack thereof, with the Epstein Files Transparency Act — legislation passed by Congress in November that compelled the government to release documents and materials in the federal government’s possession related to the Epstein case.

The committee voted to subpoena Bondi for her testimony in March in a surprising move initiated by Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) and backed by four other House Republicans, a stunning rebuke of the administration’s handling of the Epstein matter. Rarely, if ever, does the party in the majority subpoena a sitting Cabinet member of their own party.

After Bondi was fired by President Donald Trump about a month later, Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) downgraded the terms of her appearance to a transcribed interview rather than a formal deposition — meaning she would not have to answer questions under oath and the proceedings would not be videotaped.

Bondi last appeared before Congress in February in an oversight hearing before the House Judiciary Committee, during which several of Epstein’s victims sat in the audience behind her. Despite entreaties from Democrats to engage with the victims, Bondi declined.

She referred back to that February hearing in her opening statement Friday, saying that she was “deeply sorry for what any victim has been through, especially as a result of that monster.”

But a group of Epstein’s victims returned to Capitol Hill for Bondi’s transcribed interview Friday, where they pleaded outside the hearing room for witnesses in the Oversight investigation to be sworn in and videotaped for full transparency and accountability.

One of the victims, Sharlene Rochard, confronted Comer on Friday morning as he addressed reporters before joining for the start of Bondi’s interview, asking him to promise that individuals brought in as part of the congressional Epstein investigation testify under oath.

“If you lie to Congress, it’s a felony,” Comer said, defending his own panel’s process. “We’re bringing people in that have never been brought in before.”

Liz Stein, another victim, asked Comer to commit to getting answers from the former attorney general about the redaction process, specifically why details about victims were exposed while information about potential perpetrators was withheld.

“Those are questions we’re going to ask, and we’re doing this. We want justice for the survivors,” Comer said, adding that if Epstein’s victims were not satisfied by Bondi’s responses, the committee would work to get them answers.

Rep. Robert Garcia of California, the Oversight Committee’s top Democrat, told reporters he and his colleagues were “incredibly disappointed” by the majority’s decision not to force Bondi to testify under the parameters of a subpoena.

“We obviously have a lot of questions as it relates to why only 50 percent of the files have been released, why many of the survivors … were literally put in danger by the way the files were released,” Garcia said. “And of course, why this continues to be some type of cover-up.”

More than half a dozen Democrats are on hand to question Bondi, while Comer is the only Republican to come back to Washington early from the weeklong congressional recess. Mace had previously said she planned to come back to town to question the former attorney general but was not present Friday morning, explaining she was busy preparing for the South Carolina gubernatorial primary election next month.