I spotted this piece by Philip Bump in the Washington Post after I posted on Sheathed Sword yesterday. It tends to confirm the concern I expressed – that trans Americans are uniquely vulnerable this year.
“New polling from YouGov, shared exclusively with The Washington Post, indicates that most Americans won’t be very happy when they are [when Trump policies are implemented]. On 30 policy ideas presented to a national pool of respondents, 22 saw a majority oppose the idea. Only four had majority approval.
Among those four are two centered on transgender Americans. The policy that fared best, with 57 percent of adults offering at least some support, was banning hormonal or surgical treatments for transgender minors. The third most popular policy was Trump’s proposal to legally limit the number of recognized genders in the United States.
The other two that received majority support were related to immigration. One, reflecting other recent YouGov polling, indicated majority support for the policy known as “remain in Mexico.” The other saw a narrow majority of Americans express support for deporting thousands of immigrants in the country illegally.”
In other words, Trump’s policy “ideas” are not very popular. Except those that would target two of the most politically vulnerable groups in the country: immigrants, who have no right to vote at all, and trans Americans, who are a tiny share of the population.
I am tempted to say “I rest my case.” Both of these groups need strong allies to survive the onslaught.