Politics

Lauren Boebert is livid that her home state passed pro-trans legislation

Rep. Lauren Boebert
Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) Photo: Screenshot

Out Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) just signed three bills supporting health care rights in the state, including one that makes the state a safe haven for those seeking abortions or gender-affirming health care, and one elected official from the state – Congresswoman Lauren Boebert (R-CO) – is not enjoying hearing about it.

“It is a complete disgrace,” she tweeted about the bills.

On Friday, Polis signed a bill that ensures that people – even people who live in other states – can get legal health care like abortions and gender-affirming care in Colorado without getting prosecuted in their home states, shielding health care providers and patients from interstate investigations.

“We celebrate freedom,” Polis said in a statement. “Today is really about freedom, standing up to protect freedoms that are under attack, sadly, in many other states across the country.”

Colorado borders several states that have banned gender-affirming care, including Idaho and Utah, while many of Colorado’s neighbors, including Wyoming and Texas, have severely restricted abortion access.

“We see you and in Colorado, we’ve got your back,” said state Sen. Julie Gonzales (D) at the signing ceremony.

But Boebert was not pleased.

“It is a complete disgrace that our state will be passing a law legalizing the mutilation of young children under the guise of medical care,” she wrote on Friday. “Leave our children alone.”

Two days later, she said that a majority of Americans oppose reversible puberty blockers for minors and called gender-affirming care “grooming,” which is a word used to describe child sex abuse techniques.

She was referring to a recent Economist/YouGov poll that found that a majority (53%) of American adults oppose “allowing parents to provide their transgender children or teenagers with puberty-blocking drugs.” The wording, though, makes no mention of doctors or medical supervision, implying that parents may be obtaining the medications illicitly.

Medical decisions aren’t made by polling people with no background in medicine and who aren’t involved in the decision, and major medical associations including the American Medical Association, American Psychological Association, and American Academy of Pediatrics support gender-affirming care for trans youth when appropriate.

Moreover, state law in Colorado isn’t made by national polls, and Boebert herself doesn’t even support democracy for the U.S. government, so it’s unclear why she brought up the poll.

One of the three bills signed by Polis on Friday protects people who travel to Colorado to obtain legal health care from being persecuted by home states that have made it illegal to cross state lines to do so. The second bill requires large employers to include abortion in their health care plans. The third outlaws false advertising by anti-abortion centers.

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