 |
| Social conservatives in Michigan spent $50 million to get GOP gubernatorial nominee Tudor Dixon (seen here) and other Republicans elected by in part scapegoating the transgender community. They failed big time. |
One story of the 2022 midterms which needs more attention is how social conservatives used Michigan as a battleground for their war on transgender Americans. According to a November 7 article in Semafor, political writer Dave Weigel said that Michigan Republicans and social conservatives spent an enormous amount of money on attacking trans people in hopes of winning big in the state.
Republicans and conservative groups have spent at least $50 million this cycle on a topic that wasn’t a focus of their 2020 campaigns – transgender rights, and Democratic support for gender-affirming care for young people.
In Michigan,(GOP gubernatorial nominee Tudor) Dixon and attorney general candidate Matt DePerno have campaigned to stop sexually explicit materials in schools, while a campaign to beat a pro-abortion rights ballot measure has framed it as a plot to legalize “sterilization” — the amendment would codify a right to procedures like vasectomies — as a backdoor to gender surgeries for minors.
A September 18 article in MLive said that several other Republicans were also echoing anti-LGBTQ rhetoric in an attempt to reach their base and fundraise. The article said that they were receiving a backlash from both Democrats and Republicans for their "playground taunts." Some questioned the tone of the rhetoric such as when Michigan Republican Party Co-Chair Meshawn Maddock called openly gay Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg a “weak little girl ”on Twitter.
As we all know, this attempt by Dixon and other Republicans failed tremendously and it wasn't even close.
Michigan Advance said the following:
Democrats in Michigan have made history for the first time in four decades by taking back control of both chambers of the state Legislature. Voters also reelected the entire Democratic ticket for governor, attorney general and secretary of state . . .
In addition, conservatives who ran for local school boards in the state (exploiting bigoted sentiments pushed by Dixon) also did poorly.
And to top it off, some Republicans blamed Dixon the sweeping losses. Michigan Republican Party chief of staff Paul Cordes blasted Dixon on several points in a memo. One of the points called her out for focusing on 'culture war' issues.
He also pointed to Dixon’s emphasis on culture wars, implying Dixon would’ve been better served concentrating on the economy. “There were more ads on transgender sports than inflation, gas prices and bread and butter issues that could have swayed independent voters,” Cordes wrote. “We did not have a turnout problem – middle-of-the-road voters simply didn’t like what Tudor was selling.”
The big story here is while the attempt to infuse anti-LGBTQ arguments into the midterm campaign failed, it doesn't mean the opponents of equality will stop. There will be a next time. Any one person or any group willing to spend $50 million to undermine our rights and wreck our lives should never be taken lightly.
