Conservatives Applaud Trump for Dropping Defense of Obama's Transgender Bathroom Directive
Conservative Christian advocacy groups have commended President Donald Trump for his administration's decision to stop defending a transgender bathroom directive for public schools that allowed for biological men to women's restrooms.
In a reversal from the policies of former President Barack Obama, the Trump administration announced Friday that they were not going to challenge a nationwide injunction issued last year against the directive.
In a statement emailed to The Christian Post on Monday, American Family Association President Tim Wildmon said that his organization was "pleased the Department of Justice has withdrawn the motion filed by the previous administration at the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals regarding President Obama's transgender bathroom directive."
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"This is an indication that Attorney General Jeff Sessions and President Trump will not allow the Department of Justice to be used to impose radical social experimentation on America's students. For America's families, this is welcomed news," stated Wildmon.
The Family Research Council directed CP to a statement released Monday by their President Tony Perkins in which he also welcomed the decision to drop the defense.
"The Trump administration is right to stop the legal defense of an indefensible edict that violates the rights of parents and the privacy of schoolchildren nationwide," stated Perkins.
"While this is a welcome first step, we are hopeful that the Trump administration will formally withdraw the Obama edict so that parents and schools will remain free to protect the privacy and safety of every student."
Perkins also stated that he believed the "Obama administration went way beyond the limits of its constitutional and statutory authority to rewrite laws legally adopted by Congress."
"The federal government has no authority to strip parents and local school districts of the right to provide a safe learning environment for children by forcing them to adopt controversial shower and bathroom policies," continued Perkins.
Last August, federal Judge Reed O'Connor of the Northern District of Texas issued a national injunction against President Obama's controversial directive telling public schools that they must allow transgender students to use the public facilities of their choice.
"Defendants are enjoined from enforcing the guidelines against plaintiffs and their respective schools, school boards, and other public, educationally-based institutions," decided O'Connor.
"All parties to this cause of action must maintain the status quo as of the date of issuance of this order and this preliminary injunction will remain in effect until the court rules on the merits of this claim, or until further direction from the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals."
The Justice Department's reversal was denounced by LGBT groups and activists, including Mara Keisling, the executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality.
"While the immediate impact of this initial legal maneuver is limited, it is a frightening sign that the Trump administration is ready to discard its obligation to protect all students," stated Keisling.
"Transgender students are not going away, and it remains the legal and moral duty of schools to support all students."
