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A Republican co-sponsor of the “Trump Derangement Syndrome” bill in the Minnesota Legislature now faces federal charges for attempted solicitation and coercion of a minor.

Before Justin Eichorn resigned in disgrace from the Senate last week, he was also a co-sponsor of SF2531, a bill that would require — if a dispute about gender arises — inspections of girls’ genitals, testing of their testosterone levels and analysis of their chromosomes before they can participate on girls’ sports teams.

This bill is not just anti-trans, it also potentially puts a target on the back of any female who doesn’t look feminine enough, including in elementary grades.

To the authoritarian right, “freedom” is the freedom to dominate others, including seeking sexual gratification from girls, subjecting girls to invasive genital examinations, and making a mockery of real mental health disorders.

Trumpism is a transgressive agenda. The charges against Eichorn are far less serious than the sex trafficking charges against Andrew Tate, yet Trump welcomed Tate back to the U.S. a few weeks ago. Trump invited Connor McGregor to the Oval Office last week just months after an Irish court found McGregor civilly liable for violently raping a female acquaintance in 2018. A House Ethics committee report released in December confirmed rumors that Trump’s first pick for Attorney General, Matt Gaetz, paid for sex with a 17-year-old girl.

The rule of law protects girls. An abusive leader who pardons and rewards boundary-violating people based on their loyalty to him does not. Criticizing Trump’s authoritarian behavior is speaking truth to power, not a mental health disorder.

Protecting the rule of law is the most effective way to protect girls and women from harm.

Jennifer Vogt-Erickson
Albert Lea