Free Republic

A federal judge in Fort Worth, Texas, Monday disallowed the Obama administration's attempt to change the nation's mind on the latest liberal social cause: sex-alteration. Judge Reed O'Connor enjoined the administration from enforcing new directives from the Departments of Justice and Education, which would prop open public-school restroom doors for access by students identifying with a gender different from the one they were assigned at birth. How this moral/constitutional tangle gets resolved we will learn in due course. Meanwhile, O'Connor's decision highlights a campaign issue deserving of the closest attention, despite its receiving, up to now, almost none. The Bolsheviks...

This piece is co-authored by Emmett McGroarty, senior fellow at American Principles Project.Narrowly viewed, the unlawful “guidance” letter issued by the U.S. Departments of Education and Justice, implicitly threatening schools that refuse to allow both sexes to access all restrooms, locker rooms, dormitories/sleeping quarters, and probably sports teams, represents a leftist assault on student privacy. But the attack is much broader than that, actually targeting fundamental realities on which human civilization is based. Rather than write a book on that subject, let’s focus on one strand that should especially disturb parents: The guidance is yet another in a long series...

Conservatives care about logic. Liberals care about emotion. Conservatives care about whether a program works or not. Liberals care about how supporting a program makes them feel. Conservatives take the positions they do because they believe they’re best for society. Liberals take the positions they do because they make them feel and look compassionate or superior to hold those positions. Once you understand those basics, it’s very easy to see why both sides hold the positions they do on most issues and to comprehend why there’s so little middle ground. Once you get the mentalities, you can predict where each...

Debates over the U.S. government's foreign and economic policies have recently taken a backseat to the debate over what bathroom transgender individuals should use. The two sides of the debate both believe that government has the legitimate authority to tell private businesses who they should allow to use their facilities. Few on either side of this debate defend the right of private property owners to decide for themselves who may and may not use their bathrooms. Some say government must be involved in this issue in order to ensure that private businesses do not violate individual rights. Those who make...

resident Obama and other politicians are taking a wide stance over the nation’s public restrooms. Important bathroom policy will finally be determined at the highest levels. In early May, public school educators nationwide received a legalistically-worded joint letter from the Departments of Justice and Education explaining how to legally treat transgender students under Title IX of the Civil Rights Act. CNN boiled it down to “Fall in line or face loss of federal funding.” Friendly federal “guidance” comes after dueling lawsuits between the Feds and North Carolina over that state’s House Bill 2, which establishes statewide restroom regulations. Those regs...

From bathrooms to abortions, John Heilemann believes that in his heart, Donald Trump is a social liberal. Heilemann made his assertion on today's With All Due Respect in the context of discussing Trump's comments on a Today town hall this morning in which he was critical of the North Carolina transgender bathroom law, and said he'd have no problem letting Caitlyn Jenner choose any bathroom. Heilemann: "Trump is probably, I think in his gut, a social liberal. I think his position on abortion, for instance, the ["very pro-choice"] position he held for most of his life, is the real position...

BOSTON — Former Red Sox pitcher and ESPN baseball analyst Curt Schilling has been fired from his position as an analyst for ESPN following comments he made on social media earlier this week regarding the bills going through several states to require people to use the bathroom of their assigned gender. The bill impacts the transgender community, because many of those individuals prefer to use the bathroom of the gender with which they identify.

Donald Trump says transgender people should be able to "use the bathroom that they feel is appropriate." On NBC's Today show Thursday morning, the GOP front-runner said he opposes North Carolina's "very strong" bathroom bill, which allows businesses to prohibit transgender people from doing just that. "North Carolina did something that was very strong and they're paying a big price. And there's a lot of problems." Trump said.

Republican Donald Trump says he'd be fine with Caitlyn Jenner using the bathroom of her choice at Trump Tower. (AP File Photo) (CNSNews.com) - Republican Donald Trump, appearing on Thursday's "Today" show, said transgenders should be allowed to "use the bathroom that they feel is appropriate." "So if Caitlyn Jenner were to walk into Trump Tower and want to use the bathroom, you would be fine with her using any bathroom she chooses?" host Matt Lauer asked Trump. "That is correct," Trump said. Asked for his view on the North Carolina bathroom controversy, Trump said the state has "paid a...

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on campaign 2016 (all times Eastern): 8:15 a.m. Donald Trump says he believes transgender people should be able to use whichever bathroom they choose. Speaking at a town hall event on NBC's "Today" Thursday, Trump said North Carolina's so-called "bathroom law," which directs transgender people to use the bathroom that matches the gender on their birth certificates, has caused unnecessary strife.

Transgender people should be able to use whatever bathroom they want, Donald Trump said Thursday. "Oh, I had a feeling that question was going to come up, I will tell you. North Carolina did something that was very strong. And they're paying a big price. There's a lot of problems," the Republican presidential candidate said during a town hall event on NBC's "Today." Referring to comments from an unnamed commentator who on Wednesday said North Carolina should "leave it the way it is right now," Trump said he agreed. "Leave it the way it is. North Carolina, what they're going...