Gloves Come Off In Dem Senate Primary Debate: ‘You Threw Those Trans Kids Under the Political Bus’

Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA) and incumbent Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) sparred on Thursday night in a tense Democratic Party primary debate for Markey’s seat.

The debate, hosted by WCVB-TV, WBUR-FM and The Boston Globe in Boston, was the latest contest in what has been a bruising race between the two well-known Massachusetts Democrats ahead of the Sept. 1st vote. In previous debates, Moulton tried to link Markey to Jeffrey Epstein, which Markey slammed as “reprehensible.” The latest debate saw Moulton on the defense as he apologized for his past criticism of trans participation in sports and tried to move further to Markey’s left.

“Trans people are under assault by this administration across the country. And if you are someone who’s feeling the weight of this administration, I want you to know that you belong, you matter, and I will have your back,” Moulton insisted, adding:

To anyone hurt by my comments, I’m sorry, because that was not my intention. My intention was to say that we need to take on these issues. We need to have this debate and not cede it to Republicans across the country.

I’m proud of my 100% voting record from the Human Rights Campaign. I’m also proud of 988, which is saving thousands of LGBTQ+ lives around the country. I’m so proud to have been fighting for years on the House Armed Services Committee to give trans people the right to serve, which I’m especially proud to report they’ve been doing at twice the national average. These are amazing patriots. We need to support them.

“Yes or no, Congressman: do you think transgender athletes should be allowed to take part in girls’ sports?” followed up the moderator.

“I think they should, with a discussion about where we have issues of safety and fairness, and I think that’s something Democrats should take on, not cede to Republicans, because I’ve been proud to vote against all of this hateful Republican legislation, but we haven’t fought forward. We’re not taking this on ourselves,” Moulton replied, adding:

We’re saying, how are we going to enshrine protections for healthcare, for not getting fired for who you are? That’s my point. And again, I’m sorry if I hurt people, because that was not my intention. My intention is to say, if we as Democrats don’t start making these decisions, don’t foster this debate ourselves, then we’re just ceding the field to Republicans, who will continue to put forward this hateful legislation. And Senator, you know that we agree on this. So rather than using it as an attack against me, let’s find ways to work together to extend these protections and fight back the Republicans, because they’re the enemy.

“Senator. Go,” added the moderator.

“There’s a reason why the Human Rights Campaign has endorsed me in this race. There’s a reason why the Christopher Street Project, the transgender community, has endorsed me in this race, and it’s because you threw those trans kids under the political bus, and you met with family members after you had made those very hurtful comments, and those families — they were hurt after they left that meeting,” Markey shot back, adding:

They said how hurt they were, and it was only two weeks ago that you finally apologized. But that’s almost two years later. Those families were hurting. They were in pain. And especially if a Democrat from Massachusetts is leading the attack upon them, then that’s why those communities have my back in this race, because I had their back during their toughest time.

“Senator, it’s not just two weeks that I’ve apologized. I’ve made clear what I meant by my comments for a long time. And I am sorry if I hurt anyone, because that was not my intention. But I do think we need to lead on this issue. It’s why I’m proud to have a number of trans people supporting my campaign. And it’s why we need to fight forward on this issue, not just cede the ground to the Republicans yet again,” Moulton replied.

Markey also faced criticism over his age during the debate and claimed at one point he’s “more energized than ever been before.”

Watch the clip above via C-SPAN.

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