Donald Trump’s Complete Track Record on LGBTQ Issues
Businessman Trump and politician Trump have different perspectives on LGBTQ rights.
Businessman Trump
Feb. 2000
In an interview with The Advocate, Trump says, "I think the institution of marriage should be between a man and a woman, but amending the Civil Rights Act would grant the same protection to gay people that we give to other Americans — it's only fair."
(via CNN)
April, 2012
Miss Universe Canada disqualifies transgender contestant Jenna Talackova after saying she had “falsified her application when she said she was born female.”
Trump, then the owner of Miss Universe, intervenes and reinstates Talackova. He tells Fox News, “It has become a hot subject. It is being talked about all over the world right now - this is a young woman who, according to the laws of Canada and according to the laws of the United States, is allowed to enter the pageant system.”
Nov. 2013
“I think I’m evolving, and I think I’m a very fair person, but I have been for traditional marriage. I am for traditional marriage, I am for a marriage between a man and a woman.”
Trump tells MSNBC, “My stance right now is traditional marriage,” but adds his views could be “evolving.”
Jan. 31, 2016
Trump says he would strongly consider appointing Supreme Court Justices who would reverse marriage equality. “It has been ruled upon. It has been there. If I’m elected I would be very strong in putting certain judges on the bench that I think maybe could change things.”
(via NBC Nightly News)
April 26, 2016
Trump says that transgender people should use whichever bathroom they prefer and that he is opposed to a North Carolina bill restricting access.
June 14, 2016
Trump tweets a thank you message to the LGBT community and says he will “fight for [them].”
July 16, 2016
Mike Pence is named as Trump’s running mate.
On his campaign website, Pence opposes marriage equality and the use of federal money for organizations that celebrate and encourage the types of behaviors that facilitate the spreading of the HIV virus. He states, “Resources should be directed toward those institutions which provide assistance to those seeking to change their sexual behavior.” The statement is interpreted by many as an endorsement of conversion therapy.
Nov. 18, 2016
Trump nominates Jeff Sessions for the United States attorney general. Sessions has a history of anti-LGBTQ stances; including vehemently opposing marriage equality, voting against the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, and opposing the expansion of hate crime legislation to include crimes motivated by someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity.
Nov. 23, 2016
Trump selects Betsy DeVos as the U.S. Secretary of Education. She rescinds Obama-era guidelines on Title IX preventing discrimination against students on the basis of gender identity and refuses to investigate bathroom access complaints from trans students.
Presidency
March 24, 2017
Trump nominates Roger Severino as Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Civil Rights. Severino rolls back multiple protections for LGBTQ people and allows faith-based foster care and adoption agencies to continue getting taxpayer funding even if they exclude LGBTQ families and others from their services.
July 26, 2017
Trump tweets that he will ban transgender people from serving in the U.S. military. He says he consulted with his generals and military experts which was later reported as false.
May 8, 2018
Under Trump, the Bureau of Prisons rolls back Obama-era protections for incarcerated transgender people. The change states that biological sex rather than gender identity should be used to place prisoners.
Feb. 20, 2020
Trump nominates Richard Grenell as acting director of National Intelligence, making him the first openly gay person to be appointed to a cabinet-level position.
July 1, 2020
Under Trump, the Department of Housing and Urban Development creates a new rule allowing homeless shelters to turn away transgender people trying to access services that align with their gender identity.
(via Al Franken on YouTube)
Sept. 27, 2020
Trump nominates Amy Coney Barrett, who has given multiple speeches to the anti-LGBTQ hate group Alliance Defending Freedom, to the Supreme Court.
Post-presidency
April 2022
The Heritage Foundation launches Project 2025, produced by 140 former Trump staffers. The 920-page document says the following terms must be banned from all federal regulations: sexual orientation, gender identity, diversity, equity and inclusion, gender, gender equity, gender awareness, gender-sensitive, abortion, reproductive health and reproductive rights.
Trump praises the project in an appearance before the Heritage Foundation shortly after its launch, though he would later claim he has “no idea who was behind it.”
“On Day 1, I will sign a new executive order to cut federal funding for any school pushing … transgender insanity and other inappropriate racial, sexual or political content onto our children.”
Jan. 2023
Trump releases a campaign video where he says if elected president, he “will ask Congress to pass a bill establishing that the only genders recognized by the United States government are male and female, and they are assigned at birth … No serious country should be telling its children that they were born with the wrong gender.”
March 26, 2023
In his first presidential campaign rally, Trump vows to crack down on “transgender insanity” and stop policies promoting “the disfigurement of our youth.”
“I will immediately sign an executive order to cut federal funding for any school pushing critical race theory, transgender insanity, and other racial, sexual or political content on our children,” he says.
May 10, 2024
If re-elected, Trump says he will rescind Title IX protections for transgender students on day one of his presidency. These protections were reinstated by Biden in April 2024.
Sept. 10, 2024
During the Presidential Debate, Trump says, “Now [Harris] wants to do transgender operations on illegal aliens that are in prison ... This is a radical left liberal that would do this.” The comment was the only mention of the LGBTQ community from Trump on the debate stage.
Oct. 14, 2024
The Trump campaign has spent more than $19 million on two television ads that have aired nearly 55,000 times since Oct. 1, according to data from AdImpact. The ads focus on transgender issues, targeting Kamala Harris for her past support of policies related to gender-affirming care, ending with the slogan "Kamala is for they/them, President Trump is for you.”
Oct 16, 2024
During a Fox News town hall, Trump says he will get rid of all trans women in female sports. Harris Faulkner, the host, asks, "How do you stop it? Do you go to the sports leagues?" and Trump replies, "You just ban it. The president bans it. You just don't let it happen."
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