The Tyrannical GOP Is Ruthlessly Attacking One Trans Child and Putting Her Life in Danger

When it comes to trans folks, the federal government is doing everything in its power to erase an entire community. The President has signed an executive order defining sex strictly as male or female, based on so-called “biological characteristics” determined at conception. The government is banning gender-affirming care. Our government has barred trans people from serving in the military. They’re forcing passports to reflect sex assigned at birth. Mentions of LGBTQ+ resources have been erased from federal websites.

It’s petty, it’s senseless, and it’s cruel. And this week, Republicans took it a step further: They’re attacking a kid.

Put aside whatever your politics may be about transgender athletes in women’s sports. You don’t bully and harass a child.

Here in Maine, state representative Laurel Libby—who literally asked last year, “What did the Nazis do that was wrong?”—set her sights on a trans girl who competed in a track and field event. Libby plastered the girl’s photo and name on Facebook, whipping up outrage over her participation.

When her post went viral, she doubled down on Fox News. Then, notorious transphobe Riley Gaines boosted Libby’s X post to her 1.4 million followers, ensuring that the outrage machine reached maximum capacity.

And here’s Donald Trump last night:

*”Is anyone here from Maine?”* he asked whatever crowd of sycophants he was speaking to. *”I hate to tell you this, but we’re not going to give them any more federal money. They’re still saying they want men to play in women’s sports, and I cannot believe they’re doing that. So we’re not going to give them any money, none whatsoever, until they clean that up.”*

"None whatsoever" — Trump says states that allow trans people to play sports will no longer receive federal funding

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— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) February 20, 2025 at 8:21 PM

First off, that’s unconstitutional. We learned this lesson the last time Trump was in office, during his failed attempt to defund sanctuary cities. But let’s not kid ourselves: Even if he can’t follow through on the threat, his administration can still make life hell for Maine until we fall in line.

And that’s the whole point. The girl at the center of this—whose name and face were deliberately amplified—is going to be harassed not just by the usual right-wing bigots but by people in Maine whose livelihoods depend on federal funding. They are trying to turn a high school athlete into a national supervillain.

Libby, who is bigoted trash, refuses to take down her post. Even after House Speaker Ryan Fecteau asked her to remove it, she refused. And when Trump threatened to cut off federal funds, she practically cheered. “President Trump pledges to step in to protect girls’ sports in Maine and clean up the failure by both the Maine Principals’ Association and the Maine Democrat Majority!” she wrote.

There’s no “protecting” happening here. This is about power, humiliation, and using a child as a political punching bag. It’s a grown woman engaging in schoolyard bullying, except instead of shoving a kid in a locker, she’s throwing her into the Fox News outrage machine and handing out torches to the mob.

I don’t care what your politics are: You leave kids out of it. This is petty. It’s tyrannical. It’s cruel. And worst of all, it will make this girl’s life unsafe.

I should note that Laurel Libby is not representative of Maine. She’s the Nancy Mace of Marjorie Taylor Greenes—opportunistic, deranged, and desperate for attention. Maine’s House Speaker, Ryan Fecteau, has already condemned her disgusting stunt: “All kids, including transgender students, deserve better than to be used as political fodder for internet bullies. They shouldn’t have to worry about a politician sharing images of them online without their consent.”

Exactly. And if anyone would like to let Libby know how you feel about her endangering the life of a child, she can be reached by email at [email protected] and her office phone number is, (207) 632-7619.