Mike Huckabee Has Terrible Opinions On Trans Issues

Republican Presidential Candidate Mike Huckabee has no problem saying horrible things about transgender people, as audio released on Tuesday proved. At an appearance in February, Huckabee said that he'd have loved to be trans at one point in his life, "when I was in high school," to spend time with girls, "when it came time to take showers in PE.” “I’m pretty sure that I would have found my feminine side and said, ‘Coach, I think I’d rather shower with the girls today,’" he continued. "You’re laughing because it sounds so ridiculous, doesn’t it?” Huckabee was speaking in Nashville at the National Religious Broadcasters Convention, and according to BuzzFeed, his comments were uploaded to YouTube by WorldNetDaily over the weekend. While Huckabee's comments would be offensive no matter when the tape surfaced, they're particularly significant because of Caitlyn Jenner's Vanity Fair cover and story, the growing conversation around trans issues, and the broader acceptance that has been building for more than a year. The former Arkansas Governor also trotted out a bit of fearmongering in his speech, suggesting that anti-discrimination laws allowing trans people to use restrooms appropriate for their identity are actually bad for children. “For those who do not think that we are under threat," he said, "simply recognize that the fact that we are now in city after city watching ordinances say that your seven-year-old daughter, if she goes into the restroom, cannot be offended and you can’t be offended if she’s greeted there by a 42-year-old man who feels more like a woman than he does a man.” Of course, it's not surprising that Huckabee doesn't support recognizing gender fluidity; he's well known as a religious conservative who has said supporting gay marriage is on par with supporting polygamy, has compared abortion to the Holocaust, and in his past life as a preacher, railed against alcohol and Monty Python movies.