State GOP leaders target trans House candidates
Alabama Democrats rallied behind Allison Montgomery and Terri Osborne after the state GOP chair made disparaging remarks at a Republican women’s event.
Scott Stadthagen, chair of the Alabama Republican Party, took aim last week at two transgender Democratic candidates running for House seats in the upcoming election.
"We've got two men who have mental disorders, who like to dress like women, who think they are females on the ballot this general election," Stadthagen told the Eastern Shore Republican Women on Thursday. "One's in Madison County, one's in Baldwin County. That is a mental disorder, ladies and gentlemen."
Allison Montgomery is running for House District 25 in Madison County, and Terri Osborne is running for House District 96 in Baldwin County.
Alabama Republicans have focused plenty of attention on transgender issues in recent years, promoting bills to exclude transgender individuals from sports or bathrooms that match their gender identities, banning transgender books from library youth sections and making it a criminal act to provide puberty blockers to minors for the purpose of gender transition.
Richard White Jr., chair of the Alabama Democratic Party's LGBTQ+ caucus, called on fellow Democrats to reject the identity politics pushed by the GOP.
"As a Democrat, I am calling on our party and our allies to stand tall, reject these divisive tactics, and fully support Allison Montgomery and Terri Osborne," White said. "Let's make sure our Alabama Democratic Party is defined by what we build, not by what they tear down."
Montgomery said the comments from Stadthagen are "just plain prejudice."
"They brought up my womanhood because they have failed at governing," Montgomery said. "Ask yourselves, if I hadn't transitioned, would your gas be cheaper? Would your utilities be cheaper? Would groceries be more affordable? Would your medical debt go away? No; so it's just plain weird that Stadthagen and other State House Republicans are so obsessed with me."
Montgomery also drew attention to the recent arrest of two-term Republican lawmaker Brett Easterbrook, charged with attempted human trafficking after allegedly offering $500 for sex with a woman he believed to be 18 years old.
"Yet the GOP will keep telling you that LGBT folks are the threat to your children so that their friends can keep getting away with actual child abuse," Montgomery said.
