Trump Says He's 'Protecting Our Country' When Asked About Ending Transgender Recognition
- By
- Carlos Santoscoy
- | October 23, 2018
President Donald Trump on Monday responded to a report that his administration is considering a narrow definition of sex which would exclude transgender people in civil rights law.
(Related: Trump proposed rule change would “define transgender out of existence.”)
First reported on Sunday by The New York Times, a leaked memo calling on federal agencies to adopt a biological definition of sex has stirred outrage among transgender activists. According to a Washington Blade report, more than 200 activists protested outside the White House on Monday. The hashtag #WeWillNotBeErased quickly began to trend on social media following release of the Times' story.
(Related: Jazz Jennings, Caitlyn Jenner respond to Trump's plan to end transgender recognition.)
On Monday, Trump was vague in answering a reporter's questions about the report.
“We're looking at it,” Trump said. “We have a lot of different concepts right now. They have a lot of different things happening with respect to transgender rights now. You know that as well as I do and we're looking at it very seriously.”
When the reporter reminded Trump that
he had pledged to protect LGBT people during the 2016 campaign, the
president suggested that he was taking action in order to protect the
nation.
“I'm protecting everybody,” Trump said. “You know
what I'm doing? I'm protecting everybody. I want to protect our
country.”