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| Image: Pixabay |
We know from his first term in office that Donald Trump isn't a hard worker. But he's set a blistering pace here in the first days of his second term, pumping out executive orders at a rate that can only be described as bigly.
One of his main targets? Transgender people.
On his first day in office, he issued an order stating the U.S. recognizes two sexes, thus denying the existence of trans, nonbinary and intersex people. That day he also put the kibosh on DEI programs across the federal government, hurting all queer people and other marginalized groups.
Last week, Trump reinstated his previous ban on transgender people in the military. A line from his order reads, "For the sake of our Nation and the patriotic Americans who volunteer to serve it, military service must be reserved for those mentally and physically fit for duty."
Trans people aren't mentally fit, you see. Of course, neither is the new defense secretary, but never mind.
The executive order winningly called "Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation" restricts federal funding for gender-affirming care for trans minors and some adults. Next came the order barring schools that receive federal funding from allowing students to identify with the appropriate name and pronouns.
It's been a full-on assault, a Heritage Foundation wet dream.
I'm one who believes in the pendulum effect, that social trends swing back and forth. But right now it feels as though we're swinging so far to the right the pendulum looks more like a wrecking ball. And that guy giddily operating the crane shouldn't have access to anything bigger than a Tonka.
