Illinois: Pritzker uses trans people to position himself as leader of anti-Trump movement

J.B. Pritzker is determined to position himself as the leader of the opposition to the policies carried out by Donald Trump once he becomes president. To do so, he will not hesitate to show his most progressive side. He first launched, together with Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, an alliance to confront the president-elect. Now, the Illinois governor has used the transgender cause to boost his figure and gain greater prominence.

During Transgender Awareness Week, which runs Nov. 12-19, Pritzker directly addressed those in that community to assure them that, in Illinois, they will be protected from any initiative the president-elect enacts against them, as if he represented a threat.

"This Transgender Awareness Week, I want you to know that I see you and have your back as governor. Illinois has enshrined protections for gender-affirming care to meet this moment — and because of that, you will have a home here always," Pritzker stated via his X account.

The Illinois governor has been legislating on behalf of the transgender community for years. In 2021, according to a report from Breitbart, he launched a package of measures for the state Department of Human Services to protect "transgender, non-binary and gender nonconforming students." "This guidance from the Illinois Department of Human Rights will provide students, caregivers, and educators another tool to ensure classrooms are welcoming, affirming, and inclusive for all students," he said at the time.

Separately, in Illinois, the Medicaid program offers gender reassignment treatments and surgeries. "Healthcare is a right, not a privilege, and I'm committed to ensuring our LGBTQ community and all Illinoisans have access to that right. Expanding Medicaid to cover gender affirming surgeries is cost effective, helps avoid long term health consequences, and most importantly is the right thing to do," Governor Pritzker noted in 2019, when Trump was president.