Rand Paul clings to transphobic rhetoric in attempt to win reelection campaign in Kentucky

Another day, another Republican trying to turn the general public against a vulnerable, marginalized population. This time, we can look at a recent campaign ad from Republican Sen. Rand Paul, who decided to use trans folks as a scapegoat to try and get reelected in Kentucky, as covered by LGBTQ Nation. In the big picture, we’ve seen conservatives accuse trans girls of ruining the chances of cis girls to play sports and earn titles and scholarships. But in reality, many states passing anti-trans sports bills—and even signing them into law—have little to no evidence to suggest trans girls actually are taking opportunities away from cis girls, or that openly trans girls are playing sports in public schools in many districts, period. But conservatives love to make bold, blanket claims and try and use any anti-trans athlete to stir their hysteria. 

In Paul’s 30-second ad, for example, he includes Riley Gaines, a former swimmer for the University of Kentucky who, perhaps most importantly, has been vehemently against Lia Thomas participating in the women’s NCAA competitions. (For background context, the NCAA has allowed trans women to participate in women’s college sports for years.) Thomas, a trans woman who represented the University of Pennsylvania, tied with Gaines during the 200-meter freestyle at this year’s competition.

Instead of taking this fifth-place tie with grace, Gaines … Well, you can see for yourself below.

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