A Democratic congressman shouted down the Republican head of a House subcommittee Tuesday after the chair misgendered transgender congresswoman Sarah McBride.
“Mr. Chairman, have you no decency?” Rep. William Keating, a Democrat from Massachusetts, shouted at Republican Chair Keith Self.
During hearing for a Europe subcommittee of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Self, a Republican from Texas, referred to McBride (D-DE) as “Mr. McBride,” which prompted her to shoot back, “Thank you, Madam Chair.”
Self’s anti-trans comment didn’t sit right with Keating. “I mean, I’ve come to know you a little bit. But this is not decent,” Keating said to Self.
Self wanted to proceed with the hearing, but Keating refused: “You will not continue it with me unless you introduce a duly elected representative the right way.”
The chair then adjourned the hearing altogether.
McBride, who was assigned male at birth, identifies as a woman and is the first openly transgender member of Congress in American history. But some Republicans have targeted her. In response to McBride’s impending swearing in to Congress in January, Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina successfully lobbied House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) to prohibit transgender people like McBride from using single-sex bathrooms that align with their gender identities near the House Chamber.
