Southern conservatives blast Obama transgender order

Conservatives around the South blasted the Obama administration Friday for its decision directing public schools nationwide to allow transgender students to use the bathrooms and locker rooms that match their gender identity.

One state lawmaker in Tennessee said the administration was catering to a "mental disorder." A Louisiana congressman called the move extortion, while a Texas lawmaker said it was blackmail. The governors of Mississippi and Kentucky suggested their states won't comply. And a leading figure in the Nashville-based Southern Baptist Convention said children shouldn't be pawns "on behalf of the latest fashionable 'right side of history' cause."

"Transgenderism is a mental disorder called gender identity disorder — no one should be forced to entertain another's mental disorder and it is not healthy for the individual with the disorder," wrote Tennessee state Rep. Susan Lynn, R-Mt. Juliet, on her Facebook page Friday.

But others praised the president's decision, including transgender students themselves, and some school districts already are following the new federal guidelines.

"Even if you're in a community that doesn't accept you as you are, knowing that Barack Obama sees you and recognizes you and respects you — that's a pretty big statement there to make," said Henry Seaton, a transgender 18-year-old who is set to graduate from a Nashville-area high school this year.

The new guidance from the U.S. Justice and Education departments marks the latest battle in the ongoing war over legislating which bathrooms students must use. The guidance doesn't have the force of law but outlines how the Department of Education intends to enforce Title IX, the federal law that bars discrimination in education. Title IX is tied to federal funding, so the directive carries the threat of a loss of money.

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The administration's announcement came in a letter to all schools that receive federal funding, including 16,500 school districts and 7,000 colleges, universities and trade schools. It also applies to charter schools, for-profit schools, libraries and museums that receive federal aid.

But the decision is proving particularly controversial in the conservative South. North Carolina passed a bill mandating students and others using public restrooms use the bathroom of the gender on their birth certificate. The U.S. Justice Department and the state sued each other over the enforcement of the law.

The comments from Lynn, who sponsored a Tennessee measure similar to the North Carolina law, echoed the outcry that came swiftly from conservative lawmakers around the nation. The Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network of Middle Tennessee called Lynn's comments "deeply disappointing" and pointed to how the American  Psychological Association doesn't consider being transgender a disorder.

Russell Moore, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, blasted the new directive.

"Children are not pawns of the state, to experiment with on behalf of the latest fashionable 'right side of history' cause," Moore said in a statement.

Among the leading opponents is Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, a former radio talk show host who said the Lone Star State would not yield to "blackmail from the president of the United States."

White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest dismissed such criticism, saying,  "I think this does underscore the risk of electing a right-wing radio host to a statewide elected office."

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U.S. Rep. Ralph Abraham, R-La., called the president's decree "nothing short of extortion."

Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant said it was the “most outrageous example yet of the Obama administration forcing its liberal agenda on states that roundly reject it.”

And Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin, who said public schools "should not feel compelled to bow to such intimidation," indicated the state might not comply with the president's decree.

"My administration is researching the options available for ensuring that this local issue is decided by Kentuckians, not by bureaucrats in Washington," the Republican said.

Elsewhere in the nation, South Dakota Gov. Dennis Daugaard, who vetoed a bill earlier this year that would have forced transgender students to use bathrooms that correspond with their sex at birth, believes the president can't change the meaning of a 50-year-old statute by decree, said Tony Venhuizen, the governor's chief of staff. “If the president believes this should be the law he should propose a bill to Congress,” Venhuizen said.

Democrats largely praised Obama for his actions. U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., said she fully supports the decision.

“To me it’s kind of common sense that you would want to do that. I’m not aware of any problem that has occurred because of transgender people using the bathroom with the gender that they are identifying and living as,” McCaskill said Friday during a call with Missouri reporters.

She said the North Carolina law “is a solution looking for a problem.”

Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin, a Democrat in his final year in office, said the directive fits with the state's opposition to discrimination.

Contributing: Holly Meyer, Dave Boucher and Melanie Balakit of The Tennessean; Mollie Bryant of The Clarion Ledger in Mississippi; Megan Raposa of the Argus Leader in South Dakota; Tom Lovett of The Gleaner in Kentucky; Adam Silverman of The Burlington Free Press in Vermont; Robert Brum of The Journal News in New York; and Deborah Berry, Gregory Korte and Deirdre Shesgreen of USA TODAY in Washington, D.C.

Reach Dave Boucher at 615-259-8892 and on Twitter @Dave_Boucher1. Reach Joel Ebert at 615-772-1681 and on Twitter @joelebert29.