WASHINGTON -- Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) made fun of Republicans on Friday for being "obsessed" with where transgender people go to the bathroom, delivering a speech on the House floor that fell somewhere between a comedy skit and a biting policy attack.
"I rise today to address the great American bathroom controversy," began Grayson, who is currently running for Senate.
He stood next to a poster of actress Christine Jorgensen, the first widely known transsexual woman in the country. Grayson imagined a scenario where Jorgensen had to use a public restroom today in North Carolina -- where Gov. Pat McCrory (R) in March signed a law barring transgender people from using bathrooms that match their gender identity.
"You’re going to force people who look like men, act like men -- you're going to force them into a ladies room?" Grayson asked, propping up another picture of two women standing in front of urinals, looking annoyed. "You folks in North Carolina who are obsessed with where the transgendered go to the bathroom, this is the result you've come up with?"
The Florida congressman offered a few choice words about his feelings on the North Carolina law -- "stupid," "bad," "ridiculous" -- and wondered aloud how the Republican Party can claim to be the party of small government when it's focused on regulating transgender people's bathroom habits.
"It turns out the party of small government wants a government small enough to fit underneath the toilet seat," Grayson said, adding that if people really want to tackle gender issues, they should do something about the fact that women in the U.S. still make 79 cents for every dollar that a man makes.
Watch Grayson's full, animated speech below. He dropped the word "cisgender" -- possibly a first on the House floor -- and propped up another poster of a cartoon boy and girl looking into their underwear and declaring, "Oh! That explains the difference in our wages."
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