ABOVE: Jen Psaki. Photo via The Washington Blade.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki became emotional in an interview released April 19 over legislation targeting the LGBTQ community, maintaining the measures were purely for the purpose of scoring political points.
Psaki made the comments in an interview with the News Not Noise podcast when host Jessica Yellin asked her about the motivations behind the bills.
“How do you make sense of what’s happening?” Yellin asked. “Is this sort of a predictable backlash to change? Or is this an organized political attempt to create a wedge issue ahead of the midterms in the 2024 campaign? Sort of like the way gay marriage was weaponized in 2004?”
The initial response from Psaki: “Ding, Ding, Ding.” Psaki added she had to be careful about what to say because of the Hatch Act, which limits the political speech of U.S. government officials.
Psaki went on to condemn the bills by saying, “the political games and harsh and cruel attempts at laws, or laws that we’re seeing in some states like Florida, that is not a reflection of the country moving to oppose LGBTQ+ communities.
“That is not what we see in data, that is not factual, and that is not where things stand,” Psaki added. “This is a political wedge issue, and an attempt to win a culture war.”
When they talked about the impact of the measures on LGBTQ families and children, Psaki grew emotional.
“They’re doing that in a way that is harsh and cruel to a community of kids, especially,” Psaki said, through tears. “I’m going to get emotional about this issue because it’s horrible! But it’s kids who are bullied, and all these leaders are taking steps to hurt them, and hurt their lives and hurt their families! And you look at some of these laws in these states and who’s going after parents who are in loving relationships, who have kids. It’s completely outrageous! Sorry, this is an issue that makes me completely crazy.”
The flurry of anti-LGBTQ bills includes measures aimed at restricting access by transgender youth to transition-related care, in some cases penalizing medical providers for providing such services to minors with time in prison; legislation against transgender kids competing in girls’ sports consistent with their gender identity and measures known as “Don’t Say Gay” bills — one prominently signed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in Florida — essentially placing a gag order on teachers in grade schools from even acknowledging LGBTQ people exist.
