US Congressman Seth Moulton (Massachusetts 6th Congressional District) is “taking heat” for making post-election comments against transgender athletes participating in school sports.
One of Moulton’s top aides, Matt Chilliak (his campaign manager and director of his “Serve America” political committee), resigned last week following the comments, reports The Hill. And local officials, including Moulton’s hometown mayor and school committee, along with LGBTQ+ advocacy groups across the state, have come out with strong statements criticizing the Congressman for his remarks, according to Boston.com.
“I was speaking authentically as a dad on many issues where I think we are out of touch with voters. I stand by my position. Maybe I didn’t get all of the words right,” the Salem Democrat told MSNBC’s Alex Witt (as reported in The Boston Globe.) “We’ve got to be able to have these debates. Instead, we have a wing of our party that shames us, that tries to cancel people who even bring up these difficult topics.”
Notably, reports The Hill:
Moulton, first elected to Congress in 2015, is a member of the Congressional Equality Caucus, which promotes LGBTQ equality in the House and has strongly opposed efforts to bar trans athletes from sports teams that best align with their gender identity. Moulton’s 2024 reelection campaign was endorsed by the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest LGBTQ advocacy group.
Nevertheless, the Congressman’s comments come at an especially difficult time.
Reports Boston.com:
Moulton’s comments were buried in a lengthy piece in The New York Times about how Democrats are responding to Kamala Harris’s loss to Donald Trump.
“Democrats spend way too much time trying not to offend anyone rather than being brutally honest about the challenges many Americans face,” Moulton told the Times. “I have two little girls, I don’t want them getting run over on a playing field by a male or formerly male athlete, but as a Democrat I’m supposed to be afraid to say that.”
Trump’s campaign leaned heavily into anti-transgender sentiment. One of the most prominent Trump ads included the line “Kamala’s for they/them, President Trump is for you.”
As the Democratic party confronts a prolonged examination of what went wrong in the 2024 election, Moulton’s comments are not sitting well with some leaders in Massachusetts. Salem Mayor Dominick Pangallo and the Salem School Committee denounced his remarks “in the strongest terms possible” in an email to families Friday obtained by The Boston Globe.
“We want to reassure our LGBTQ+ students that we as district leaders will always celebrate your identities, support your dreams and aspirations, and applaud your accomplishments,” the Salem officials wrote.
A spokesperson for Moulton did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
MassEquality, a statewide nonprofit that advocates for LGBTQ rights, said that Moulton’s comments “further compound our community’s sense of vulnerability.” The group said his words would further the “ongoing stigmatization of transgender people.” MassEquality is reaching out to Moulton to discuss the matter further.
Read the complete Boston.com story here and here for the complete article in The Hill. Read the complete Boston Globe story here.
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