DALLAS — Democratic U.S. Senate nominee James Talarico on Wednesday said he opposed transgender student-athletes competing in girls’ sports “if it endangers safety or fairness,” reversing course on previous positions he took while in the Texas House opposing restrictions on trans athletes.
I’ve seen people elsewhere handwave this as “playing politics” since it’s Texas and all, but there are ways to cede ground to people you’re trying to sway without completely fucking throwing an entire marginalized community under the bus once again. Yeah, using flowery wishy-washy language provides a convenient out if you put all of the weight on the word “if” but reading between the lines shows that we’re just a political playing chip on the best of days and that you also just want us dead all the same on the worst of days.
Politicians gonna pol.
But they don’t have to like this.