House Democrats call for dropping restrictions on drag shows, trans ‘care’ in 2025 Defense Authorization Bill

More than 160 House Democrats are calling for the removal of provisions in the proposed 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that eliminate services and special-interest benefits intended for LGBTQ service members and their dependents.

As reported by The Hill, the version of the NDAA passed in June by the Republican-controlled House would restrict healthcare benefits for transgender service members and their families, as well as ban such things as LGBTQ “pride” flags and “drag” events on military bases.

“The House bill, which passed on a largely party-line 217-199 vote, would also prevent the Department of Defense’s school system from providing materials that promote ‘radical gender ideology’ to students, which the bill defines as concepts or curricula that suggest sex is fluid or that state a person can socially or medically transition to a different gender,” said The Hill.

In a letter to leaders on the House and Senate Armed Services Committees, 162 House Democrats claimed that the LGBTQ restrictions in the defense bill “were constructed to score political points rather than support and invest in our most important operational advantage: our service members.” 

The pro-LGBTQ effort was led by Reps. Sara Jacobs, D-California, and Pramila Jayapal, D-Washington, who co-chair the Transgender Equality Task Force. “Our military should be welcoming to anyone willing and able to serve,” wrote Jacobs. “That’s why I led 162 House Democrats in calling to remove anti-LGBTQ+ provisions from this year’s NDAA.” 

Similarly, Jayapal posted sections of the proposed changes the Democrats are pushing for, including drag shows, Pride flags, transgender books for school children, and a drag queen story hour, reported The Blaze. “Drag artists and their performances serve as an essential form of self-expression and drag performances have long been a part of military history, tracing back to World War I and World War II,” Jayapal’s proposal read. 

U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, took to social media to expose the Democrats’ letter, noting that Republican lawmakers wisely passed this year’s NDAA “to ensure the U.S. MILITARY does not promote transgender surgeries, drag shows, transgender books, or ‘pride flags.’” 

Many of the amendments barring LGBTQ benefits from this year’s House version of the NDAA were also included in the House Republicans’ previously proposed NDAA, “but were effectively tossed by Senate Democrats,” reported The Federalist. “The final version of the bill ‘negotiated’ by Speaker Mike Johnson and Democrat leadership ultimately left out such provisions, allowing leftists’ neo-Marxist policies to fester in the military for another year.” 

As the nation closes in on the crucial November elections, transgender issues are not uppermost in the minds of American voters. “Voters cite the economy and inflation as their top concerns in the election,” noted The Blaze, “while ‘LGBT rights’ rated less than half a percent in importance in a recent Gallup poll among Americans.