Rep. Nancy Mace doubles down on using anti-transgender slur: 'I don't really care'
Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., doubled down on using an anti-transgender term during a House hearing Wednesday after a Democratic congressman pointed out it was a slur.
At the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform hearing, Mace asked witnesses to weigh in on whether USAID, a U.S. foreign aid agency that is being dismantled under the Trump administration, funded "America first" initiatives.
"USAID awarded $2 million to strengthen trans-led organizations to deliver gender-affirming healthcare in Guatemala," she said in the hearing. "Does this advance the interest of American citizens paying for (slur) in Guatemala to the tune of $2 million?"
After yielding her time, Virginia Rep. Gerald Connolly, the ranking Democrat on the committee, addressed her language and said it is considered a slur to the LGBTQ community, but Mace interrupted him and repeated the slur multiple times.
"I don't really care. You want penises in women's bathrooms and I'm not going to have it," Mace interjected.
Mace previously used same derogatory term, drawing 'hateful conduct' warning from X
Mace is vocally anti-transgender, and this is not the first time she has used this particular slur publicly. She frequently advocates for restricting transgender women from using women's restrooms, including introducing a resolution that would bar her colleague Rep. Sarah McBride, D-Del., the first openly transgender person to be elected to Congress, from using the women's restroom at the Capitol.
The term Mace used is considered derogatory, defamatory and dehumanizing for transgender people according to GLAAD, an LGBTQ media advocacy organization.
Mace also used the same slur to describe transgender protesters demonstrating against the Capitol bathroom resolution, according to GLAAD. A screenshot she posted to X shows one of her videos was tagged with a content warning saying it could violate the platform's rules against hateful conduct."
"To me, a slur is a slur and here in the committee, a level of decorum requires us to try consciously to avoid slurs," Connolly continued after Mace repeated the slur.
"The only thing the Left has going for them is political correctness because they are so wrong on everything else," Mace's spokesperson Gabrielle Lipsky told Paste BN in an emailed statement. "So far, the President Donald Trump White House has exposed their failures and abuses of our federal government, and we are determined to keep going. Maybe the Left should start worrying about how their failures impact the American people, the national deficit, and Western values instead of obsessing over 'mean words.'"
When reached for comment by Paste BN, Connolly's office pointed to his interview with MSNBC, where he said he was "willing to speak up and fight for" the LGBTQ community.
"This is just basic human decency...find a better word. And try to avoid causing, in this case, intentional pain. I just don't understand that, we're all Americans," he told the network. "Be kind, what's that really cost you?"
Trump administration targets transgender community in first weeks in office
The transgender community has increasingly become a target for far-right attacks in recent years, leading to hundreds of bills introduced across state and federal legislatures aimed at restricting health care for youth, bathroom access and the ability to participate in sports.
Trump made "keep men out of women's sports" one of his core campaign promises and he has moved on it in his first weeks in office. Wednesday night, he signed an executive order aimed at that, but legal and civil rights experts have said it is unclear whether he possesses the authority to do so.
Since taking office again, Trump has also signed executive orders directing the federal government to stop supporting gender transitions for those under 19 years old, and another order attempting to ban transgender people from serving in the military.
Contributing: Zachary Schermele, Francesca Chambers, Ilana Keller, Paste BN Network
Kinsey Crowley is a trending news reporter at Paste BN. Reach her at kcrowley@gannett.com, and follow her on X and TikTok @kinseycrowley.