Vulnerable Democrats refuse to say if they would support youth gender surgery without parental consent

Vulnerable House and Senate Democrats refuse to say whether they support gender reassignment surgery for minors and if the controversial procedure should be allowed without parental consent, despite recent concerns over the issue.

Gender reassignment surgeries for minors have become a hot-button political issue, though vulnerable Democrats have noticeably stayed on the sidelines of the conversation at a time when inflation, crime and border security continue to rank at the top of voters' concerns going into the upcoming midterm elections.

Fox News Digital reached out to several vulnerable House and Senate Democrats, asking if they would support access to gender reassignment surgeries for minors, as well as whether they support surgery without parental consent. None of the Democrats responded.

Facing the possibility of losing their majority in Congress, Democrats have urged their caucus to focus on bread and butter issues, like the economy and Social Security. Despite this, Biden sat down with a transgender activist last week on left-wing outlet NowThisNews to discuss transgender issues and how he believes that individuals should have the right to use restrooms based on their gender identity, rather than their biological sex.

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Biden was asked by 25-year-old transgender actress Dylan Mulvaney if states should have the right to "ban gender-affirming health care."

"I don’t think any state or anybody should have the right to do that – as a moral question and as a legal question. I just think it’s wrong," Biden responded. "I feel very, very strongly that you should have every single solitary right, including use of your gender identity bathrooms when public." 

Stephanie Winn, an Oregon-based child and family therapist, recently told Fox News that despite her openness to the transgender movement, she's becoming "increasingly concerned" about the trend of youth identifying as transgender and the possible "lifelong, irreversible medical experiments that are happening to children as a result of this ideology." 

She added that in 10-15 years, "we're going to see a transition regret crisis, and unfortunately, we are going to have to worry about some of the most frightening mental health outcomes as part of that."

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One of the Democrats contacted, Rep. Tim Ryan, D-Ohio, who is competing for the open Ohio Senate seat against GOP nominee JD Vance, pledged to support taxpayer-funded gender reassignment surgeries for incarcerated Americans and illegal immigrants, according to a 2019 presidential questionnaire from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

Several states have been making moves to ban gender reassignment surgery for minors amid the health concerns. Last week, a joint committee of Florida's two medical boards voted to move forward with a plan to ban gender reassignment surgery for minors. The ban would also prevent other controversial treatments for gender dysphoria, such as puberty blockers for minors. 

Elizabeth Guzman, a Democratic Virginia lawmaker seeking re-election this fall, recently said she would introduce a bill that would criminalize parents who do not affirm their LGBT children. The bill would expand the state's definition of child abuse and neglect to include parents who do not affirm their LGBT children's gender identity or sexual orientation.

"Well, we first have to complete an investigation," Guzman told WJLA about the new bill. "It could be a felony, it could be a misdemeanor, but we know that [Child Protective Services] charge could harm your employment, could harm their education, because nowadays, many people do a CPS database search before offering employment."

The Democrat members of Congress who did not respond include: Rep. Tom O’Halleran, D-Ariz.; Rep. Cindy Axne, D-Iowa; Rep. Sharice Davids, D-Kan.; Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine; Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Mich.; Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn.; Rep. Annie Kuster, D-N.H.; Rep. Tom Malinowski, D-N.J.; Rep. Chris Pappas, D-N.H.; Rep. Dina Titus, D-Nev.; Rep. Susie Lee, D-Nev.; Rep. Steve Horsford, D-Nev.; Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Ohio; Rep. Matt Cartwright, D-Pa.; Rep. Susan Wild, D-Pa.; Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Va.; Rep. Abigail Spanberger, D-Va.; and Rep. Kim Schrier, D-Wash.

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The candidates competing in Senate races this fall, who also did not respond to Fox News Digital's request, include: Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H.; Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz.; Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev.; Rep. Tim Ryan, D-Ohio; Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga.; Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, D-Pa.; Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, D-Wis.; Rep. Val Demings, D-Fla.; Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo.; Cheri Beasley; and Evan McMullin.