Pence dodges question on rising violence against LGBTQ people

Former Vice President Mike Pence during Wednesday evening’s Republican presidential debate all but avoided answering a question about what he would do to address rising violence against LGBTQ people if he is elected next year, instead offering up a plan to champion the rights of parents in schools and ban gender-affirming health care for transgender people.

“As president of the United States, I’ll stand up for the safety and the civil liberties of every American from every background,” Pence said in response to a question from moderator Ilia Calderón. “And I want the American people to know that.”

Pence did not elaborate on his answer to Calderón’s question, which had referenced a May Department of Homeland Security briefing that warned of intensifying violence against the nation’s LGBTQ community.

The former governor of Indiana instead pivoted sharply to education. He told moderators and an audience gathered at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif., that he “has been sleeping with a teacher for 38 years.” His wife, Karen, an art teacher, most recently taught at Immanuel Christian School in northern Virginia, which prohibits openly gay parents and students from attending.

Pence touted Indiana’s school choice program, which he said doubled under his leadership. He also criticized transgender student support policies that exclude parents. “That’s not bad policy — that’s crazy,” he said.

“We’re going to stand up for the rights of parents, and we’re going to pass a federal ban on transgender chemical or surgical surgery anywhere in the country,” Pence said. He did not specify whether such a ban would be limited to transgender minors or whether it would extend to transgender adults.

State-level bans on gender-affirming medical care enacted this year in states including Florida and Missouri have left some transgender adults scrambling to access care that is considered medically necessary by every major medical organization. Twenty-two states in total have passed laws that ban gender-affirming care for transgender youths, including 19 that did so this year.

“We’ve got to protect our kids from this radical gender ideology agenda,” Pence said Wednesday. “We’ve got to empower parents at the state level with the ability to choose where their kids go to school, whether it’s public, private, parochial or homeschool.”

“You empower parents, and our schools will straighten up and reflect our values and focus on the basics faster than you can imagine,” he said.

Earlier in the debate, fellow GOP presidential contender Vivek Ramaswamy said being transgender is a “mental health disorder” and vowed to ban gender-affirming health care as president. Ramaswamy did not say whether that ban would include care for adults.