Biden's Easter Proclamation- Tempest in a Teapot?
If we are to credibly criticize President Biden, let's get our facts straight
Let me be clear. I detest what President Biden has done, and is doing, to our country. I do not detest the man; I actually feel sorry for him. I do believe to him to be dishonest, politically malleable, and not too bright. At this time, however, I feel he is a intellectually and physically diminished old man who has no business being the president, an empty shell filled with whatever ideology will get him re-elected. The term “elder abuse” comes to mind when I see him.
I also believe in fairness and honesty in reporting, rather than partisan cherry-picking.
With that said, I would love to take Biden to task for his proclamation that Sunday, March 31 would be Transgender Day of Visibility (TDoV). Yes, the same Sunday as Easter. The outrage and backlash were immediate. I was outraged and said so on a Facebook post. I thought he made this up just to push gender ideology into the faces of Christians, who view Easter as more important than Christmas or any other religious holiday because it celebrates the resurrection of Christ which, if true, is the most significant event in the history of mankind.
Yes, I was primed for a knee jerk reaction to a piece of news like this from a man that I believe has done more to destroy our country than any president in my memory.
But wait! A Facebook friend informed that TDoV is a real thing. It was started in 2009 by Rachel Crandall Crocker, a psychotherapist and trans-woman who came out as trans in 1997. At the time, Rachel was living as a married man and his wife left him as a result. Crocker also lost his (her?) job as a result of coming out. TDoV has been celebrated annually since then.
Because of the way the date for Easter is determined, Easter falls on a different day nearly every year. The TDoV is always on March 31. The two have never fallen on the same day until this year.
The allegation that the date of TDoV was established to coincide with Easter is therefore false. So, does this absolve Biden of any culpability for his controversial proclamation? I do not believe it does. Biden is the only president to ever issue such a proclamation and he did so in 2021, 2022, and 2023 with little fanfare. Having observed Biden for three years, I am convinced that his intellectual faculties are too limited to work through the potential conflict of such a proclamation on Easter. I am sure he wonders what all the fuss is about. I place full blame on his “handlers” and advisers behind the scenes. It is inconceivable that none of them appreciated the outrage such a proclamation on Easter would create and I submit this was the intent all along. I admit I fell for it.
Biden and, more specifically, his handlers and advisers have shown themselves devoid of subtlety. Witness the defense of his feckless withdrawal from Afghanistan, which was described as secure and orderly, and his persistent claim that our southern border is secure.
Obama was more subtle. In 2013, he issued a proclamation that June would be Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month without once mentioning TDoV. Biden’s advisers could have told him that his proclamation was, at best, insensitive and, at worst, inflammatory and simply deferred a proclamation this year or moved the observance to another day so as not to conflict with Easter, but no, that wouldn’t do. I, and millions of others, believe it was a deliberate slap in the face. This response has nothing to do with whether or not there should be a TDoV, but wisdom of comemorating the two on the same day.
Where I believe the Christian, conservative response erred was in misrepresenting the history of the TDoV and mischaracterizing Biden’s proclamation as though it was an intentional fabrication rather than simply exploiting of a random confluence of dates. I think the latter is just as bad as the former and conforms to Biden’s past history of cluelessness regarding slights to different groups. This brings to mind such past Biden misstatements as, “If you have a problem figuring out whether you are for me or Trump, then you ain’t black.”
What is remarkable is the willingness of Biden and those behind him to alienate a huge demographic in this country. Evangelical Christians are a huge voting block. This may come back to bite him in the November election.
Richard T. Bosshardt, MD, FACS
Fortunately, the conservative news sources that I listen to did in fact, talk about the history of TDoV. I suggest getting conservative news from the Daily Wire, particularly from Ben Shapiro if you’re interested in researched news, with reason and logic sans histrionics.
Biden terrifies me for all the reasons mentioned in this Substack and more 😳 cheers 🥂