U.S. Reps. Lauren Boebert and Nancy Mace.
(1) WASHINGTON - JUNE 14: Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., walks up the House steps for votes in the Capitol on Friday, June 14, 2024.
(2) UNITED STATES - NOVEMBER 21: Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., speaks to reporters as she leaves the Capitol for the Thanksgiving recess on Thursday, November 21, 2024.
A misguided attempt to enforce Republican Speaker Mike Johnson’s discriminatory anti-trans bathroom policy at the Capitol led to an embarrassing misstep by GOP Reps. Lauren Boebert of Colorado and Nancy Mace of South Carolina who were involved in an incident on Thursday that transgender Democratic Rep. Sarah McBride's office called “predictable.”
The pair confronted a cisgender woman in the restroom, mistakenly believing her to be the Delaware Democratic lawmaker, who is the first out transgender member of Congress. McBride had previously said she would follow House rules after Johnson banned transgender people from using the bathroom in line with their gender identity. The incident has reignited criticism of Johnson’s anti-trans bathroom regulations, which critics say endanger and harass all women.
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The Daily Beast reports that Boebert told other members on the House floor that she saw McBride walk into the ladies’ room and followed her, saying, “You shouldn’t be here.” However, Boebert quickly realized she was mistaken, according to an unnamed GOP lawmaker who spoke on the condition of anonymity. “I overheard Boebert say she went to apologize,” the lawmaker added.
Bloomberg reporter Billy House documented the developments in real time and shared his firsthand account on X (formerlyTwitter).
Related: Trans U.S. Rep-elect Sarah McBride on Mike Johnson’s Capitol bigotry: 'Not here to fight about bathrooms'
“I bear witness: Rep. Lauren Boebert bursting out of the House Women’s restroom during this afternoon’s vote series, complaining to security personnel stationed in the nearby Speakers Lobby of ’a guy’ inside the bathroom,” House wrote at 4:30 p.m. ET.
Intrigued, he observed as four individuals—“all women”—left the restroom. Minutes later, Boebert returned, this time with Mace, who has championed the bathroom ban.
Related: As the first out trans person in Congress, Sarah McBride is ready to fight for us
“Who would dare leave this scene now? Not me,” House tweeted. But after entering the restroom, Boebert and Mace quickly reemerged and returned quietly to the House floor. When House later asked Boebert about the incident, she admitted her mistake.
In a statement to The Daily Beast, Boebert said, “I made an error regarding a mistaken identity. I apologized, learned a lesson, and it won’t happen again.”
The Advocate contacted a representative for Boebert to ask what lesson she learned but did not receive a response.
Shortly after gaveling in the 119th Congress, Johnson changed the rules of the House of Representatives to include a mandate that restrooms can only be accessed according to one’s gender assigned at birth. Mace, who has positioned herself as a defender of women and frequently comments on bathroom policies, has remained silent about this incident. However, on Friday morning, she tweeted her objection to gender-neutral bathrooms. Responding to Tennessee Republican Rep. Tim Burchett, who shared a photo of what appeared to be a single-use gender-neutral bathroom accessible for people with disabilities in the Department of Veterans Affairs, Mace wrote, “Absolutely not. Hold the line.”
McBride, who was not present during the confrontation, confirmed to The Daily Beast that she had no interaction with Boebert or Mace. Michaela Kurinsky-Malos, McBride’s deputy chief of staff and communications director, told The Advocate what happened was unsurprising. “What a thoroughly predictable – and predicted – outcome,” Kurinsky-Malos said. “Representative McBride thinks people should get back to work rather than play bathroom police.”
New York Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has long warned that such rules could lead to harassment and harm.
“What it inevitably results in are women and girls who are primed for assault because people are gonna want to check their private parts in suspecting who is trans and who is cis,” Ocasio-Cortez said last year. “All it does is allow these Republicans to go around and bully any woman who isn’t wearing a skirt because they think she might not look woman enough.”
The Advocate contacted Mace and Johnson’s representatives for comment, but nobody responded.
