On December 22, as many may have been busy hanging garlands or wrapping gifts, President-elect Donald Trump took to the stage at Turning Point USA's AmericaFest 2024. It was the last of four days of intense right-wing speeches and messaging at the confab, and — of course — Trump was the one everyone who was there in Phoenix wanted to hear from.
Trump had already won the November election to serve a second term and that was a campaign where the once-and-future president used transgender people as a cudgel to attack Democratic candidate Kamala Harris via an advertising spending spree. An astonishing $215 million went into television ads vilifying transgender people. It was a number that Harvard Law's Alejandra Caraballo noted is "$134 per trans person in anti-trans ad spending."
So, the Turning Point speech, really, was a victory lap — and also to share his plans for the next four years.
Trump began with his usual warm-ups, thanking many of the individuals present, ranging from Texas Senator Ted Cruz (R) to actor Rob Schneider. Then he started into his first day policy plans, abruptly jumping right into transgender issues with no obvious segue.
"With the stroke of my pen, on day one, we're going to stop the transgender lunacy," said Trump, eyes fixed firmly on the teleprompter to his right. His voice is monotone, the voice of someone reading along with the words on the screen.
The audience, as close to a "hometown crowd" that MAGA can pull in, goes absolutely wild, with cheers and applause that sounded enraged and angry, more like howls than anything gleeful. Make no mistake, though, there is glee present, but it's a sharp, menacing sort of euphoria, as if going to Disneyland — except they were looking forward to kneecapping Goofy. It's dripping with pure malevolence.
Trump reads ahead a bit, and then turns to his left, getting closer to his microphone. His eyes now fix on the left teleprompter, and his cadence gets a little quicker, a rapid fire of words. "And I will sign executive orders to end child sexual mutilation, get transgender out of the military and out of our elementary schools and middle schools and high schools," he said.
The crowd responds louder still. Even Trump seems a little surprised, pausing to let people applaud while he briefly shakes his head, with lips pursed, before he continues.
"And we will keep men out of women's sports," Trump said, again still firmly fixed to his left. The crowd practically wails in this mix of anger and giddiness that seems almost inhuman.
Trump shifts back to the right, pulling away from the teleprompter, eyes down, and he faces forward. "And that will likewise be done on day one," he said, before he goes into one of his typical forms of rhetoric, asking the crowd for their reaction. "Should I do day one, day two, or day three? How about day one, right?"
The crowd replies with a bit of a sneering chuckle to this, but Trump's face betrays no cheer. Rather, he goes back to focusing on the teleprompter to his right.
"Under the Trump administration," he continues, again back to the cadence of an uneasy reader, "it will be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders." He turns from the right again, looking to the audience, eyes darting briefly. "Male and female."
The crowd again loudly cheers, as if on cue. Trump briefly shifts from one leg to another.
He then concludes his transgender talking points by quipping, somewhat dismissively, "It doesn't sound too complicated, does it?" He veers then into a disastrous series of economic proposals largely focused on destroying the environment, killing regulatory oversight, and his usual mix of imaginary banter.
What struck me was how unemotional he was while discussing the dissolution of transgender rights — such as they are — in America. Almost robotically reading from the teleprompter with a couple slight ad libs. It's nothing he seemingly cares about with any depth.
No, this wasn't about him. It was about the crowd. That's where the true evil was. They were gleeful and giddy, and full of hostility. They were not content with Trump's election victory; they wanted blood. I don't even think they care much about whose.
This is what keeps me up at night.
I know that there are people in Trump's close orbit who intend to enact horrors onto trans and nonbinary folks, but Trump himself? I think he doesn't really give much of a damn about trans rights either way.
It's not that Trump will necessarily be a horrible president for us. We know. It's clear that his whole reason for running was to keep out of jail, get revenge on those he perceives as enemies, and see just how much more he can get away with. He's simply not all that interested in transgender people one way or another, aside from how he can use us — and use us he will.
I go back to those cheers from the audience. Those were the people I might pass on my morning walk, or are in line behind me at the grocery store. They might be the pharmacist who handles my hormone prescription, or the police officer who pulls me over for a broken taillight.
If you, dear reader, have trans friends in your life, this is why we're losing sleep right now. This is why we're anxious. It's not just what this administration will do to us, it's that Trump's fans are legion, and any interaction is a potential danger.
They are screaming for blood — our blood.
Gwen Smith knows a lot of people who are not sleeping well right now. You'll find her at www.gwensmith.com
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