Maine Democrats, Despite High Court, Silencing Lawmaker Censured Over Anti-Transgender Posting

Maine Democrats are blocking a Republican lawmaker from speaking on the state house of representatives floor due to a censure over posting the name and photo of a transgender athlete on social media.The speaker of the Maine house stripped Laurel Libby of her power to speak on the House floor and her ability to vote on legislation after she refused to apologize for the post. Ms. Libby said she was being asked to recant her views.Last month the U.S. Supreme Court said that Ms. Libby could not be barred from carrying out her voting duties while a lawsuit over the censure plays out. Ms. Libby is allowed to make procedural motions but she isn’t allowed to engage in debate under the injunction.Ms. Libby is now trying to speak on the record to announce her votes on bills she was blocked from participating in under her censure. She argues the censure only prevents her from debating bills on the floor, not from speaking when one isn’t under consideration. When she requested the right to speak on Wednesday, the speaker, Ryan Fecteau, denied her.“There is no bill before us, thus I will not be participating in debate, I simply want to be heard on the record,” Ms. Libby said.“The member may not proceed,” Mr. Fecteau, a Democrat, responded.A debate followed on whether Ms. Libby could speak. “I rise with a concern that we’re objecting to a member of this body having the opportunity to speak on the record,” Representative Randall Greenwood, a Republican, said in support of Ms. Libby. “If this is going to be the practice going forward, I will object to any member on the other side that wants to speak on the record.”Representative Marygrace Cimino, a Republican, also questioned why Ms. Libby could not speak in regard to her votes. “She’s not debating anything. She’s not in violation of the censure,” Ms. Cimino said. “She’s just vocalizing and on the record what her votes are.”The Democratic majority then voted to reject Ms. Libby’s request to speak on the record. “If this might be an apology, I’d be happy to vote yes,” Representative Sharon Frost, a Democrat, said.The events around Ms. Libby started unfolding in February, when she posted a photo on X and identified a trans athlete who won the state girls championship for pole vaulting. She posted a follow-up stating that the student had competed in the competition the previous year as a boy and took fifth place.Ms. Libby said the house speaker called her the next day and asked her to take down the post. She noted that no one from the athlete’s family had reached out to her about the post, and the athlete’s name had already been published in the newspaper as part of a recap of the competition.After she refused, the speaker introduced a censure resolution. It passed 75-70 on a party-line vote. Unlike most states where censure is a minor infraction, Maine treats it differently and strips important privileges from members. Mr. Fecteau said the censure would be lifted if Ms. Libby simply apologized. She filed a federal lawsuit on March 11 to get the censure overturned, saying it left her constituents without a voice in the legislature. A U.S. district judge ruled against her on April 22 and an appeals court rejected her appeal before the Supreme Court issued an injunction that restored her right to vote while her appeal plays out.Maine’s position on allowing transgender athletes to compete has gotten national attention. President Trump issued an executive order shortly after his inauguration requiring athletes to play on teams that coincide with the sex they were assigned at birth.Mr. Trump and Governor Mills got into a verbal spat over the issue during a public event at the White House in February. He warned her about complying with the executive order. Ms. Mills replied by telling the president that her state would “comply with state and federal law” and that she would “see you in court.”“You better do it because you’re not going to get any federal funding at all if you don’t,” Mr. Trump replied.Ms. Libby says she again plans to attempt to speak next week and to try to retroactively vote on bills.

Maine Democrats, Despite High Court, Silencing Lawmaker Censured Over Anti-Transgender Posting

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