slate - "The Silliest Advice in That Asinine New York Times Op-Ed Promoting Democratic Centrism" [View all]

[NRaleighLiberal]

(Graphic warning - there's a pic of McCrory)

http://www.slate.com/blogs/outward/2017/07/06/mark_penn_and_andrew_stein_slam_transgender_rights_in_asinine_new_york_times.html

by Mark Joseph Stern

On Thursday, failed campaign strategist Mark Penn and money-laundering Trump supporter Andrew Stein declared in a New York Times op-ed that the Democratic Party must “move to the center and reject the siren calls of the left.” Penn and Stein’s ornery manifesto urges Democrats to imprison more opioid addicts, champion “tough anti-crime measures,” end sanctuary cities, and crack down on undocumented immigrants. The whole op-ed is really just an endorsement of centrist white nationalism filled with catastrophically asinine proposals that, if adopted, would enrage most Democratic voters. (Why, after all, should the diverse and progressive Democratic base cater to the prejudices of white ethno-nationalists who are already fleeing the party?) Yet the silliest line in the whole affair involves not race but gender: Penn and Stein exhort Democrats to abandon “transgender bathroom issues” for their own good.


We’ve seen this advice before. Shortly after the presidential election, the Times published an op-ed by Mark Lilla calling for “the end of identity liberalism.” Lilla criticized Clinton for her “rhetoric of diversity,” as well as her focus on the concerns of “African-American, Latino, L.G.B.T. and women voters.” To drive home his point, Lilla proclaimed that “America is sick and tired of hearing about liberals’ damn bathrooms.” Straight white men who’ve never had to think twice about using the bathroom in safety are obviously very perturbed that the Democratic Party backs transgender rights.

What’s so strange about this particular complaint, however, is that trans bathroom access is a winning issue for Democrats—even in red-leaning states. A February poll by the Public Religion Research Institute found that 53 percent of Americans oppose laws forcing trans individuals to use the bathroom that corresponds to the sex assigned to them at birth. Only 39 percent of respondents approved of such measures. Meanwhile, 65 percent of Democrats and 57 percent of independents oppose regulations limiting trans bathroom access. Summarizing the data, PRRI Chief Executive Robert P. Jones explained: “This is a case where it really is Republicans kind of pulling away and being more of an outlier to the rest of the country.”

We’ve seen this dynamic play out on the state level repeatedly over the last few years. In North Carolina, then–Republican Gov. Pat McCrory staked his career on support for the state’s controversial HB2, which restricted trans bathroom use and nullified local LGBTQ nondiscrimination ordinances. He lost to a Democrat, Roy Cooper, who ran on opposition to HB2—while Trump carried the state by nearly 175,000 votes. McCrory’s loss is almost certainly attributable, at least in large part, to his relentless defense of HB2. In North Dakota, Republican Gov. Dennis Daugaard vetoed a bill that would have prevented trans students from using the school bathroom that aligns with their gender identity. In Georgia, Republican Gov. Nathan Deal vetoed an anti-LGBTQ “religious liberty” law that also would restricted trans rights. Both governors feared toxic backlash—not only from liberals, but also from independents, moderate Republicans, and the business community.

snip - much more at the link.