GOP lawmakers reveal a heightened legislative focus against ‘irreversible’ gender surgery on minors

Republicans are gearing up for a trifecta of control in Congress next year with a heightened focus on legislation against transgender medical procedures on minors. 

During a Senate panel on Wednesday afternoon, lawmakers discussed the future of legislative action in Congress, such as bans on biological males competing in women’s sports, restrictions on gender-related surgery on minors and cessation of taxpayer funding of these types of procedures for children, and expanding parental consent requirements.

The discussion was hosted by Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., and was led by Terry Schilling, president of the American Principles Project (APP). Schilling interviewed Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., Rep. Mary Miller, R-Ill., and Paula Scanlan, a swimmer who shared her experience of competing alongside Lia Thomas, a transgender athlete on the women’s team at the University of Pennsylvania.

“This movement from the beginning has been about saving America, but mostly about protecting our children,” Schilling said in his opening remarks.

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Senator Roger Marshall, a Republican from Kansas, speaks during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., U.S. on Thursday, March 4, 2021. (Ting Shen)

Marshall, a former medical doctor, discussed his efforts to “shut down the gender industrial complex.”

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“Here, today, we’re protecting young ladies and men from genital mutilation, ’cause this is what this is,” Marshall told the panel. “It’s hard for me to believe we’re doing irreversible damage to these young children.”

Tuberville, who introduced the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2023, said that “we’ve gotten no help from the Democratic side,” but that Republicans are going to continue working on the issue in the next Congress when Senate Republicans will likely have a majority.

Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., arrives for the Senate Armed Services Committee confirmation hearing on Wednesday, July 26, 2023.  (Bill Clark)

“I can’t believe we’re even having to do this,” Tuberville added. “It is pure insanity and has caused irreversible damage on children. This isn’t about politics folks, this is about good and evil.”

“Title IX is the best thing to come out of this building in 50 years,” Tuberville, a former coach, said. “Biological men playing in women’s sports is not a right.”

Scanlan told the panel about her experience competing for the University of Pennsylvania’s swim team alongside a biological male, saying that she had to change in the locker room with Thomas “18 times per week.”

Paula Scanlan shares her story as a swimmer at UPenn competing against teammate Lia Thomas, the first transgender D-1 athlete to win a title.  (Aimee Dilger)

Marshall revealed that Congress will be introducing the Safeguarding the Overall Protection of Minors Act (STOP), which will aim to “punish people who perform surgery or mediation on minors.”

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According to an APP report recently covered by Fox News Digital, total revenues for transgender drugs and surgeries in 2023 are estimated to surpass $4.4 billion. That number, according to the study, could exceed $7.8 billion by 2030.