Yesterday, the January 6th Committee was conducting yet another hearing about the terrorist attack on our country. The focus of yesterday’s hearing was the organization and management of various white supremacist terrorist groups. Senator Josh Hawley was part of that – he was a huge part of the Stop the Steal “movement” and he actively encouraged and managed the white supremacist terrorists arrival in Washington and the fact that they stormed the Capitol. Unfortunately, Hawley was not part of the Jan. 6th hearing. Instead, he was taking part in a different committee hearing on abortion rights. He decided to get transphobic about Professor Khiara Bridges’ testimony, where she used the correct terms “pregnant people” or “people with the capacity for pregnancy.”
During a Senate hearing on the future of abortion rights Tuesday, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) became the latest Republican lawmaker to use transphobic rhetoric to rile up the GOP’s base — and to avoid wrestling with the consequences of abortion restrictions across the country.
Hawley, in his line of questioning, asked one of the witnesses — UC Berkeley Law Professor Khiara Bridges — why she kept using the term “people with a capacity for pregnancy” when she was describing who would be affected by bans and restrictions on abortion. “Would that be women?” Hawley asked.
Bridges explained that she was using this term to be inclusive of different groups who would be affected by these laws. “Many cis women have the capacity for pregnancy, many cis women do not have the capacity for pregnancy,” Bridges explained. “There are also trans men who are capable of pregnancy as well as non-binary people who are capable of pregnancy.”
“So this isn’t really a women’s rights issue, it’s a — ” Hawley countered.
“We can recognize that this impacts women while also recognizing that it impacts other groups. Those things are not mutually exclusive,” said Bridges. Hawley then went on to ask what she thought the “core of this right” was about. At that point, Bridges noted that his remarks limited who the conversation about abortion rights should be centered on.
“I want to recognize that your line of questioning is transphobic, and it opens up trans people to violence,” said Bridges, who went on to cite studies about the high attempted suicide rate among trans people. Hawley expressed skepticism that his remarks would contribute to violence, prompting Bridges to note that he was denying trans people’s existence.
“Do you believe that men can get pregnant?” said Bridges.
“No, I don’t think men can get pregnant,” Hawley said.
“So you’re denying that trans people exist,” Bridges said.
“And that leads to violence?” Hawley said.
The whole exchange is infuriating, although I appreciate that Professor Bridges decided that she had the time. It’s asinine that a terrorist like Hawley is still a sitting senator and that he’s using his position to A) be transphobic, B) dog-whistle to his transphobic base, C) create a transphobic sideshow in an abortion rights hearing and D) actively pursue and legislate hate, misogyny, forced-birtherism and transphobia. We are in such a dark time.
Photos courtesy of Cover Images.
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- EXCLUSIVE United States Senator Josh Hawley (Republican of Missouri) is intense and emotional with his questioning of Beth Robinson as she appears before a Senate Committee on the Judiciary for her nomination hearing to be United States Circuit Judge for the Second Circuit, in the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Washington, DC, Tuesday, September 14, 2021. Credit: Rod Lamkey / CNP Where: Washington, District of Columbia, Vereinigte Staaten When: 14 Sep 2021 Credit: Rod Lamkey – CNP/DPA/Cover Images **ONLY AVAILABLE FOR PUBLICATION IN THE UK AND USA**
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- EXCLUSIVE United States Senator Josh Hawley (Republican of Missouri) questions Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson as she appears for the third day of her Senate nomination hearings to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, in the Hart Senate Office Building in Washington, DC, Wednesday, March 23, 2022. Credit: Rod Lamkey / CNP Where: Washington, District of Columbia, Vereinigte Staaten When: 23 Mar 2022 Credit: Rod Lamkey – CNP/DPA/Cover Images **ONLY AVAILABLE FOR PUBLICATION IN THE UK AND USA**
I almost can’t watch this without freaking out. What a disgusting person and what a great woman!!!!
My voice shakes when in a confrontational situation. I could feel my BP rising watching that exchange. She did not flinch once. Bravo to her and he’s a $hitbag to the nth degree.
My thought at the end of that was, ‘what an *sshole’. She did great, though. I love seeing how a woman can make her point in the face of male stupidity & arrogance in the workplace.
So you agree with the kook?
He’s gross. A real jerk and also just deeply unattractive to look at.
IDK how old you are but I only ever see the street reported from very early Sesame Street when I look at him. Beyond being a treasonous, seditious, bitterly closeted, racist misogynist, that is.
*street reporter w/ the microphone
OMG you’re right! he TOTALLY does look like that puppet!
I had to google…Guy Smiley.
https://themuppetmasterencyclopedia.tumblr.com/post/172138645182/guy-smiley
Hope the link is OK to share.
He totally looks like Warren Jeffs…ugh
Yep. And the overdone 80’s style nose job makes it worse.
God, he has a punchable face.
That was my thought, too.
The punchable-est.
I don’t care for the term but I’m not offended by it.
You will see humans with vaginas, pregnant people, people who menstruate, etc. but you almost never see humans/people with penises, etc. and it feels intentional. It also puts too much emphasis on organs.
The focus is always on trans women but rarely trans men.
I feel that ‘pregnant person/people’ is a great phrase that does what it needs to do in a sentence.
Cis-het men are seen as people by default – everyone else has to qualify. Terms like “pregnant people, people who menstruate, people with uteruses” are critically important in these times when we have less rights to our own bodies than if we were corpses. We are PEOPLE too. It’s frustrating that we have to keep reminding the establishment of this, and language will evolve to a more inclusive set of terms, but until then person first language really matters.
The ‘people with uteruses’ bothers me because a friend had to have a total hysterectomy within the past year due to cervical cancer. No uterus any more, but she’s still very much a woman. Still, I appreciate the conversation & I’m liking the focus on inclusivity in recent years. It’s been a long time coming & I’m happy to see the change.
So true, Lucy.
Beanie, “people with uteruses” isn’t saying that your friend isn’t a woman. It recognizes that some people who have uteruses aren’t women (aka trans men or non-binary people). They might still need to use abortion services, so that is why it is important to not exclude them from discussions about abortion access.
You’re happy to see the change BUT it bothers you? To echo the sentiment of others, inclusivity takes nothing away from anyone.
that’s because no one is regulating penises and only uteruses. that’s why it’s being talked about.
Its important to note that these terms are only really used in the context of healthcare and not day to day (that’s my understanding). They matter in terms of making sure that a person is getting the correct medical treatment they need.
because most “people with penises” aren’t subject to laws that regulate or, rather, rescind their body autonomy or reproductive organs.
Here in the UK there seems to be a trend towards ‘and’ usage e.g. “women and other pregnant people”, “women and other people who menstruate”. Personally I prefer that terminology, it’s inclusive of trans and non-binary identities, but also recognises that many people want to continue to identify specifically as women.
@TrixC, totally agree. This should satisfy everyone. The 98% of women and the 2% (l believe it is) of trans/non-binary identities. It shouldn’t be an either/or situation, it should be an either/AND.
my womanhood isnt threatened by occasional using inclusive language in the context of specific situations, mostly medical. refusing to accept or allow or acknowledge trans people to be included in issues that may literally threaten their life is small and mean.
My mistake, should have read 1% of trans/non-binary identities.
I would prefer the “and” model. I’m sorry, in the context of the fact that 99.9% of all the people who have given birth in history have been (or would become through puberty) women, “birthing people” is erasure of women. Women are just expected to make space for everyone. “And” makes it inclusive for all, including women.
Josh Hawley is a transphobic, misogynistic moron though. That much is clear.
I agree with this. Not only does being referred to by my organs reverse decades of effort to be seen as a human being, but it’s being used by the Right in a suburban culture war that will cost the midterms over a non issue.
That’s why Hawley put on this show. They tell women that Democrats won’t even use the word women. guess what. It gets white suburban moms to vote for their fascist party.
Women and other pregnant people avoids all of this and doesn’t feed into right wing lies.
Yes! This is exactly what I was thinking above, and this is a fantastic solution, IMO.
@lisa
it’s not about being threatened, it’s about remaining visible while embracing other people.
As a cis woman, I appreciate the use of “and” but no, “birthing people” does not erase women.
“Erasure of women” skirts the TERF line for me. The real erasure of women is the rolling back of our rights that will not stop with the Dobbs ruling.
BIPOC women are also suburban moms, so call it what it is, white women are more likely to feed into this line just like they did with CRT and fake cancel culture bs. Those women were never going to not vote for Hawley and his ilk.
birthing people doesnt erase me or make me invisible
Trixic I love using the and model that actually seems inclusive and representative of all scenarios respectfully. I appreciate hearing global perspectives as well.
Pregnant person ? I don’t want being a woman to be erased.
It’s not.
Pregnant children should not be referred to as women either. Using the term pregnant people covers everyone it needs to.
Her breathing noticeably changed when she heard the question, you could feel her getting upset and I applaud her for going all the way.
I don’t understand how it is possible to speak like him in his position, we have lots of crazy people here in EU but the rhetoric has to be at least civil at this political level
Donald Trump made way for people to say the horrific parts out loud IN politics. He took the rhetoric of Bill O’Reilly and Tucker Carlson and made it acceptable to say at work. He emboldened transphobes and homophobes and racists and bigots.
Hate has always existed, but for a while, only fringe nutjobs said these things publicly to this extent. Now, it’s a free for all.
@ HufflepuffLizLemon, it has become a free-for-all!! The atrocious actions of these racist, homophobic and bigots to proudly put forth their own preconceived misgivings onto anyone that should happen to cross their paths. We have become a uncivilized country where NO ONE is safe! The emboldened have come out for everyone to see with NO regard to others, spreading their hate with no filter NOR decency!!
Men interrupting women at work has been a mainstay of the American work place.
he is a malignant clown. bless her she stayed much calmer than I could.
I watched this interchange yesterday and I would not have been able to maintain Professor Bridge’s poise and graciousness as she took the time to answer this fool. My blood pressure went up. I wanted to punch his obnoxious, traitor face.
As with Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, and most women of color, she HAD to keep her cool or otherwise would be portrayed as “the angry Black woman” trope. it’s infuriating…think of how Beercan Brett acted during his confirmation hearing…the crying, the snarling faces, the anger…
This woman has a LOT of practice calmly telling yt cis men how wrong they are. g-d bless her, and that’s said with NO sarcasm.
I live in MO and Lord he’s embarrassing. I remember watching the debate between him and Claire McCaskill and he lied with a straight face about the lawsuit he was on to dismantle the ACA. He’s a snake, and we are also more than likely going to elect Eric Greitens! Miserable.
Live in MO also and am appalled at who has been elected. Not only Greitens (who will be elected) but Eric Schmitt (who has sued school districts for enforcing mask mandates) is running for the Senate. Two more idiots who will be elected.
Same feelings over here on the KS side. I’m livid we’re going to be stuck with Mike Thompson, who is likely going to be elected based on name recognition.
I think the “and” model removes the urge to argue semantics. It’s a women’s rights issue, it’s a trans men’s issue, it’s a a nonbinary issue. I don’t like terms like birthing people or people with uterus’s especially because you don’t see people with penises used for issues like prostate cancer. I’m not against the terms totally, they definitely have a purpose. I just dont like them as a replacement.
People with penises are not being denied bodily autonomy, though. People with the capacity for pregnancy (i.e. with a uterus) ARE. It’s critical that we keep saying that.
Hawley is registered to vote via his sister’s address in Ozark, Missouri, which is deep in Trump Country. I personally experienced the reality that people there experience hazing and bullying as a sense of humor. I am speechless actually about the good old boys there – very dangerous.
I live in Missouri too (unfortunately). Hawley does not even live in Missouri which infuriates me even more. His face is the most punchable right after Ted Cruz. This professor is amazing! I tweeted it yesterday.
I die of embarrassment every single time I see his name. I am in the Ozarks so it will always be Billy Long. Then it is Hawley who is a good Christian man that only has our best interests at heart. Not my words, I hear this all the time. Lived here for thirty plus years and I am still shocked how ignorant people can be.
I will tell people in my city that at least so many of us know Billy personally. We might not agree with him, we are angry with him but we know him. How can they say that about Hawley who is not even from here? I get the well, he’s a Christian so they do know him. Christians don’t judge, throw Hitler hand signs, or incite insurrections. Hawley is a sore topic for me that I could write a Tolstoy length novel about.
Claire McCaskill always stopped to say hi to me when she would take her walks. It wasn’t political charm. She was by herself. I always voted for Claire.
Roy Blunt knows my family. Use to hang out with his son when we were teenagers. He always stops me to ask about my Mom and ask about me. Tell me some good gossip. I would never ever vote for Roy.
Billy Long will look you straight in the eye and tell you it would be a cold day in hell I would vote for him. He knows my family. Every time I see Billy he wants a hug. Not pervy. He know I despise him politically.
Conservative Missourians stop voting on your religion. If you want to do the right thing vote for people who know your State. Don’t vote for people who are not from this State!!!
Schmitt and Greitens ties to Missouri are tenuous at best. Vicky is problematic but at least she has ties to our State and history.
I know Missouri is deep in Trump country. Trust me I know all too well. There are a lot of Liberals in our area, especially in Springfield where there are so many colleges. I use to work the polls. I was by MSU. I hardly ever saw the Pub’s voting. It was always always Dem’s or Independents.
I admire Dr. Bridges. I can’t imagine speaking that clearly under that pressure, faced with that hate. I know she is an expert, but he wanted to derail her and prevent her speaking from her area of expertise.
I’m the person who has the comeback comment long after the moment has passed.
As do I, @ Eowyn! He was clearly trying to pass on his rhetoric regarding trans people as well as trying to question her more educated position regarding the detrimental effects Hawley, and his like, are further eroding the protection of trans people.
I watched an interview with members in the Midwest regarding the insurrection and we’re NOT ashamed of their participation. Majority of those that lived in this sleepy town had stormed the Capital due to their perceived threats that cis white Americans are being overrun by brown, non Catholic, and LGBTQ+ citizens. People clutched onto Drumpf, and his like, due to the underlying message that white cis people are losing their beloved hierarchy in America. They drove home the message that the **only** people interested in protecting THEIR rights as cis white Americans are people like Drumpf, and of course Hawley. It was a small town that was using the excuse that the migration of “other” people had turned their sleepy white town into a criminal hot spot. People who once could sleep with their doors unlocked have now been inundated with “other” unacceptable people believed to ALL be criminals.
The Repugnant’s thrive on the fear mongering to maintain power and will stop at NOTHING to expand that fear to anyone who isn’t cis white, God fearing, gun toting true patriots.
“Many cis-women do not have the capacity for pregnancy.”
In addition to their transphobia and attempt to erase trans people, the Josh Hawley’s refuse to acknowledge that post menopausal or infertile women exist and are still women. If we can’t or won’t serve them as a sex toy/incubator, we don’t exist.
The sooner Hawley and his ilk are removed from the Senate, the better for all of us.
This part.
The absolute freak out over who is a “woman” shows just how deep the rot of misogyny and the fragility of masculinity truly goes.
It’s not a coincidence that J.D. Vance, Peter Thiel’s darling of the moment, has stated publicly that women without children shouldn’t be allowed to vote.
What????? Oh good gad!!!!!
Wait… what? When did that happen? And why are Republicans SO HORRIBLE nowadays? Every single day they manage to dig some more dirt to find a deeper place from which to be godawful.
I believe it was a tweet that has since been deleted, but there’s an article in the Federalist from July 24, 2021 where he is quoted as saying that the “childless left” has no stake in the future of the country. He also says children should be given the right to vote but that their votes should be controlled by their parents, with the goal of diluting the voting power of people without kids. He’s pushing replacement theory, plus attacking voting rights, both of which are now mainstream GOP positions.
yup, a “woman” is defined SOLELY as how one fits into THEIR lives as a man.
What can anyone expect from people who support and LURV: TAKE-A-💩! These cretins NEVER THINK BEFORE THEY SPEAK! They, like their leader/idol have NO FILTER = NO BRAIN! 🤷🏽♀️
@phaedra — LOL at both of us referring to these “cretins” at the same time!
This cretin traitors out loud and in public, and needs to be in prison. It’s truly alarming that there is such a significant “base” that eats up all this deplorable bigotry, but that’s where we are now. I was so riveted watching the J6 hearing yesterday, I could barely stand up and walk after — my body was so tense throughout. We came so close, and could still lose it all. These loathsome creatures want a civil war.
Dr Bridges kept her cool in a way I’m certain I could not. Thankful to everyone supporting trans people. It really is so helpful when you’re being bullied, to just have someone in your corner. I really appreciate reading these posts from this amazing site and the comments of love and support as well as the outrage and disgust that echo my own feelings, especially as a mom of a transgender young adult. I send my girl all of these posts and it helps to read that there are still so many good people when so many are revealing themselves as human rights haters and a bunch of dicks. Thank you
best of luck to your daughter. I love how all the young people (god I feel old) are living their lives and using terms that suit them, some of which I dont think even existed when I was their age. I am rooting for them. my uncle is trans, transitioned before I was born, and it has been a long hard journey. although it can seem like the US is one big trash heap, I can see the progress in this area and it makes me so happy.
She’s amazing, and she made some incredibly important points that probably educated a lot of people who watch this clip, but I simply can’t get over that this traitorous f*ck is somehow still in a seat of power determining life-and-death legislation for large swaths of the population. Like, what are we even doing?? Why is he still seated on any committees? Why are any of them? How is he still able to participate in a democracy he actively worked to overthrow (and that honestly shouldn’t even be in the past tense because LORD only knows what machinations these seditious a*holes are currently cooking up).
Once again, while this is an important topic and inclusivity is crucial, Dems should not get baited into a transphobic “so you think men can get pregnant” media narrative when the real story here is that at a time when our actual democracy and freedom as we know it is on the line, the people who worked to undermine our American institutions in a coup that resulted in multiple deaths and lasting national trauma are still wielding their power to oppress Americans. Josh Hawley and his ilk should not be in Congress, they should be in sitting in prison.
That’s not to dismiss trans people whose lives are impacted by this, but rather that we shouldn’t even be debating basic human rights and freedoms in 20-freaking-22. Trans rights are human rights, women’s rights are human rights, and getting bogged down by anyone who tries to “debate” that is ludicrous and regressive. We need to reject the right’s framing in its entirety.
Pretending to be interested in a discussion when what you’re really looking for is an argument has no place in government decision-making, or the committees engaged in fact-finding on specific issues.
It’s perfectly fine to not know and need to ask about different groups, definitions, and the how’s and why’s of complex subjects…it’s something entirely different to treat a respected expert witness like the set-up to a cynical, patronizing punchline.
As it turns out, Josh Hawley was (and is) the joke.
Trans masc person here who has had one terminated pregnancy, one miscarriage, and two planned pregnancies to term (and two gorgeous kids as a result) and I just want to say I’m here for these comments 🙌🏻
She is truly amazing. It’s a disgrace she had to speak to this cretin at all, he should be in the hot seat.
Dear Josh:
No one likes you. Even people who pretend to like you really don’t like you. We all know a tool when we see one.
Dear Yale Republicans:
You have A LOT to answer for…So. Very. Many. Tools, In. Your. Shed.
Regards,
K
I’m so proud of her. He can just f off forever with the manafactured we are being oPpResSeD crowd
She never backed down and dragged his pathetic ass with a smile on her face.
I will never forgive the white ppl in my home state that voted for this Big Boy reject.
Fellow Missourian here, also disgusted. Why do the rural people in this state keep voting for the politicians that serve them the least?
It bothers me a bit that she morphed the discussion from abortion rights to transphobia. I can’t stand Hawley but the issue was supposed to be about the effects of Dobbs,
I agree it feels crappy to see abortion can’t even be the focus for a minute. Republicans are trying to drive a wedge by doing either or, which of course is stupid and cruel, but that’s who they are.
She shouldn’t have fallen into his trap. Fox News will be playing that forever to further their fear bs about trans people and “ the left” erasing women.
Dobbs absolutely intersects with the LGBTQ community. Right to privacy includes sex acts between consenting adults, marriage equality, and gender affirming healthcare. Dobbs is the wedge being used to destroy it all. The sheer number of anti-trans bills before legislatures across the country is impossible to ignore. That’s why both sides are making it part of the discourse. It’s all part of the same fight.
Read about Alabama using Dobbs as a basis to prevent administering gender-affirming medical care. Not to mention that trans people also get abortions. The issues are connected.
While I don’t disagree with your point, that’s exactly what these a-holes (Hawley is a prime example) excel at: being so terrible on so many levels that MUST be addressed. And *he* is the one who derailed it by asking her to explain her language. Consider if she’d responded to his transphobic language without stopping it–she explained why it was important.
I know we’re on the same side here, but I’m just saying I don’t know how she could’ve done better than what she did.
Hate this motherf-cker so much. He was the entry point and gateway to the trumpsurrection. Let no one forget it and I hope his role in our ghastly brush with the overthrow of democracy sticks to him and buries him.
I also hate his hatchet face. Instead of Mr. Cotton, it should say Mr. Rotten.
Glad she didn’t let this joker rattle her like he tried!