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Marjorie Taylor Greene is once again making waves in American politics, and as usual, she seems more troubled than a viable political candidate. The Georgia Republican has been known to berate her rivals over culture war policies, and her recent foray into promoting her Protect Children’s Innocence Act shows the Rep has little more than shock value on her side. In a recent attempt to draw attention to her bill, Greene posted a crude ad on Twitter that included some shocking images, but not quite in the way the Republican intended.
What is HR 8731?
Shared via tweet early Monday morning, HR 8731, also known as the Protect Children’s Innocence Act, is Greene’s latest push to regulate gender-affirming care for trans patients. The bill, introduced in August 2022, aims to amend Chapter 110 of Title 18 of the United States Code to prohibit gender-affirming care of minors by making medical providers a Class C felony. Under the legislation, a minor involved would be allowed to bring charges against anyone who provided the treatment, but the proposal leaves unclear what could be considered ‘care’. It bans more than a dozen medical procedures ranging from puberty blockers and hormone therapies to certain types of surgery.
Gender-affirming care of a patient would be considered a Class C felony under Greene’s proposed law, carrying a penalty of 10 to 25 years and a maximum fine of $250,000. It puts healthcare providers in the same crime class as theft, illegal drug distribution, and aggravated assault, and any healthcare provider residing in the US on a work visa is entitled to immediate deportation if caught providing care.
The bill goes on to prohibit the use of federal funds for care, prevent federally funded hospitals from providing care, and prevent federally funded insurance plans from paying for any part of the care.
The dog whistle is the claim
Gender-affirming care is considered effective, safe, and medically necessary by many medical associations. While the primary purpose of the bill is to “protect children,” most states already have laws preventing gender-affirming childcare for those under 18, the legal age of adulthood in the United States. Conservative voices in mainstream politics are currently obsessed with identity politics and culture wars Greene’s recent rhetoric falls in the same camp as Tucker Carlson’s outrage at M&Ms and is a momentary urge for outrage and attention.
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Greene’s ad exemplifies the typical propaganda style, with overly dramatic readings and grainy imagery. She relies on her own narrative to provide the backdrop to the “horror” she is trying to prevent. Instead of backing her claims with legitimate scientific evidence, she uses fear tactics and a series of images showing people who have allegedly received gender-affirming care in the past. The images range from depicting scars to recent surgeries, and all seem incredibly personal. One image appears to depict a recent phalloplasty, and given Greene’s attitude toward trans people, it seems highly likely that she was not permitted to share the graphic and highly sensitive image. Aside from the really gross premise of showing a person’s personal parts without their consent, Greene arms these images for use against innocent people who are likely looking for these treatments.
Considering that posting explicit images and videos of someone online without their consent is illegal under Georgian law, Greene could get into hot water over the political stunt. While the Republican has made a career of causing political debacles, even for her, the impeachment would look bad. If, in fact, she didn’t have permission to share these images, it won’t be long before this advert is taken down from the internet, but it won’t happen before these misguided and inaccurate scary bits have impacted countless viewers.