Introducing Trump, N.C. Gov. McCrory Reminds Us He's Still a 'Potty Prefect'

Embattled North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory warmed up the crowd for Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump at a rally in Winston-Salem, N.C., Monday with some literal potty humor.

The Republican governor, who has championed the state's draconian anti-LGBT law known as House Bill 2, especially its provision requiring trans people to use restrooms in government buildings that do not match their gender identity, alluded to that controversial (and likely unconstitutional) provision during his opening remarks, according to several media outlets.

In front of several thousand gathered to see Trump and vice-presidential candidate Mike Pence, "McCrory took the stage and immediately started acting like a flight attendant," according to The Washington Post.

"All right, let's be safe now," McCrory told the audience, gesturing animatedly. "We've got a big crowd, so if you need to leave suddenly, we've got exits this way, exits this way, and exits this way."

"And if any of you need to use the bathroom," he continued, letting his sentence end there as the crowd cheered and clapped. After a prolonged pause, McCrory concluded, "If you have any questions, go to the Philadelphia convention where all the Democrats are."

McCrory's "joke" was a none-too-subtle dig at those who believe that everyone should be able to relieve themselves in the bathroom that best corresponds with their identity. Led by right-wingers like McCrory and Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, along with anti-LGBT legal groups like Liberty Counsel, several states and cities have introduced legislation or local policies that target equal restroom access for transgender people.

Failed Republicanpresidential candidate Ted Cruz, a Tea Party senator from Texas, channeled the right-wing narrative in the final days of his White House bid, parroting the false claim that trans-inclusive restroom policies somehow endanger women and children. This "bathroom predator" myth has been soundly, repeatedly debunked, but conservatives continue to use it as an effective scare tactic to mobilize far-right voters.

At the national level, the Republican Party's official 2016 platform, denounced by even gay Republicans as the most anti-LGBT in history, takes a decided stance against equal access to restrooms for transgender people, despite the fact that several federal agencies have confirmed that such access is already protected under existing civil rights law. The Department of Justice is currently suing McCrory and the state of North Carolina over the anti-trans provision of HB 2, contending that it violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (which prohibits discrimination based on sex) and the Violence Against Women Act (which includes protections for transgender women).

And as it happens, the Democratic National Convention does, indeed, have one gender-neutral bathroom on site during the four-day event in Philadelphia. But as out journalist Dominic Holden reported at BuzzFeed News, convention attendees who used the all-gender restroom were not bothered by the idea of peeing next to someone who might be of a different gender.

Although there have been no reported issues around the Democratic convention's single all-gender bathroom, located in the Wells Fargo Center, progressive media watchdog site Media Matters notes that right-wing pundits are trying their best to uncover a controversy where none exists. Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson, who has previously said that ensuring equal protections for transgender students was "frivolous," described the convention's all-gender bathroom as "disgusting" on today's episode of Fox & Friends.

Several far-right outlets also filmed people entering and exiting the convention's all-gender restroom, Media Matters reports, outright admitting that reporters were looking for "obviously transgender people." Unfortunately for those hoping to find the mythical "trans bathroom predator," several outlets were forced to report that "no transgender individuals were spotted using the restroom."