President Biden plans to use his bully pulpit to support and protect the rights of transgender youth, Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters at a press conference on Tuesday. Her remarks came in response to a question from the Washington Blade, following-up on a statement the President made in his address to Congress last Wednesday, when he told trans youth, “I want you to know your president has your back.”
The President “has signed executive orders,” Psaki said, referring to measures President Biden has taken to protect transgender and other LGBQ+ persons. “He’s also used the power of the bully pulpit in his presidency to convey that transgender rights are human rights. And that is his belief and the view of his administration, and how he expects policies to be implemented.”
Psaki added that the President’s use of his position and influence “includes ensuring that transgender youth have the opportunity to play sports, and to be treated equally in states across the country.”
When asked by the Blade whether the administration would pursue legal action against states which have passed or are considering passage of legislation that would ban trans athletes from competing on scholastic sports teams of their gender identity, Psaki deferred the matter to the Department of Justice (DOJ). The Blade reports that the DOJ has yet to comment on the matter, despite multiple inquiries.
The Blade also asked Psaki whether the current President had missed an opportunity by not yet appointing the first open lesbian or transgender ambassador. Psaki responded by saying that the administration has not “named many ambassadors quite yet — and we hope to soon,” adding that “certainly the President looks to ensuring that the people representing him — and not just in the United States, but around the world — represent the diversity of the country, and that certainly includes people who are LGBTQ, members of the transgender community.”
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