Montana Republicans expel trans legislator from floor
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When Republicans have the chance to express their authoritarianism and their hatred of trans people simultaneously, the result is overdetermined:
Montana Republicans barred transgender lawmaker Zooey Zephyr from the House floor for the rest of the 2023 session on Wednesday in retaliation for her rebuking colleagues – and then participating in protests – after they voted to ban gender-affirming medical care for children.
The punishment of the freshman lawmaker caps a weeklong standoff between House Republican leaders and Zephyr which concluded that she will still be able to vote remotely under terms of the punishment. She will be unable though to discuss proposals and amendments under consideration with the 99 other members of the Montana House for the remainder of the 90-day legislative session.
In a defiant speech Wednesday, Zephyr addressed House leaders directly and said she was taking a stand for the LGBTQ+ community and her 11,000 constituents in Missoula. She said that House Speaker Matt Regier was attempting to drive “a nail in the coffin of democracy.”
Montana Republicans being led by a goon who thinks that violence is an appropriate response to reporters asking questions is just one of the ways American politics in 2023 is too on-the-nose.
As Representative Zooey Zephyr left the chamber today following the party-line vote to remove her as punishment, she pressed on her light to speak.
Powerful image symbolic of the affront to democracy that occurred in Montana. https://t.co/FF7fWGWIFu— Erin Reed (@ErinInTheMorn) April 26, 2023