Bathroom policy fast becoming hot-button issue for politicians

Let me say one thing for Donald Trump. Most of the time he focuses on issues that people care about.

This does not include personal attacks on an opponent's wife; I said "most of the time." And, judging by Trump's dismal favorability ratings, most of us disagree with his positions on important issues and the reckless way he conveys them.

But, at the end of the day, immigration, health care, trade - these are things people care about.

Bathrooms, not so much.

The presumed Republican presidential nominee made headlines recently when he said he'd let Caitlyn Jenner use whatever bathroom she wanted at Trump Tower.

He suggested on the "Today" show that North Carolina, which bars transgender people from using restrooms that do not correspond with the sex on their birth certificates, should have left things the way they were. There were few complaints, he noted. And now the state is paying a hefty economic price from boycotts by entertainers, sports associations and others.

For what?

We Texans may soon be asking this question during the next legislative session in January when far-right lawmakers here try to pass a North Carolina-style measure. Apparently it doesn't matter that the U.S. Department of Justice has said the measure violates the Civil Rights Act. Or that similar measures limiting transgender rights failed last session.

Already, we're seeing certain state officials lay the groundwork.

"The handwriting is on the bathroom wall: Stay out of the ladies' room if you're a man," Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said a few weeks ago, wading into the national debate. "If it costs me an election, if it costs me a lot of grief, then so be it. If we can't fight for something this basic, then we've lost our country."

Ain't he brave?

How about fighting for something as basic as a safe foster care system, one where rape and abuse of children isn't the norm? How about equal funding for Texas public schools? Both systems are so broken in Texas that courts have ruled them unconstitutional. But it's bathrooms we're talking about.

I know, I know. It's a slippery-slope thing. If we allow people the freedom to use the bathroom they deem appropriate, one can only guess what would happen next!

Actually, we don't have to guess. They've been doing it for decades. Without much fanfare. Until it became a handy dog-whistle issue for Republican primary voters. Now it's the end of civilization.

There's no evidence that this is a public safety issue. As the mother of two young girls, I have no concern about sharing a restroom with a transgender woman. We've probably done it a dozen times already without noticing. Giving transgender people that right doesn't undermine laws that prohibit entering bathrooms with the intent to harm or harass others.

'Fixed at the local level'

Back to conservative values: I thought local control was one of them.

This week, our lieutenant governor, whose office is based in Austin, called for the ouster of Fort Worth Independent School District Superintendent Kent Scribner because he approved new guidelines to accommodate transgender students in a broad array of areas from dress code to sports.

The policy, as reported by the Dallas Morning News, directs staff to, among other things, ensure the health and safety of all students, prevent discrimination and bullying, provide equal access and opportunity, and protect student privacy. The school board has stood by Scribner, as well they should.

Meanwhile Patrick appears to have abandoned his commitment to local control, as espoused in a 2014 Breitbart article.

"Everyone wants local control but when a problem happens they want the state to fix it," Patrick was quoted saying in the conservative publication. "It has to be fixed at the local level."

Patrick said if parents are unhappy with the district's decision, then it's up to the school board and superintendent to address it. If they don't, he said, "that's why we have elections." It's up to parents and school boards to "reflect the values of that school district," he said.

Well, the Fort Worth district has spoken on its values. And they don't need some politician in Austin butting in.

Or two.

On Tuesday, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sent the Fort Worth district a warning letter about the policy. Paxton, who speaks from the moral high ground of a man under felony indictment for alleged securities violations, last week warned the national chain Target that its open bathroom policy could invite inappropriate or illegal activity.

He, too, has stood in solidarity with North Carolina.

Less than authentic

At times like these, we should all bow our heads and say a prayer for Joe Straus, the Republican speaker of the Texas House, who will have to play the grownup once again next session in staving off legislation that would hurt Texans as well as the Texas economy.

The bill doesn't have much of a chance in the House, which prompts the question: Why try?

Answer: So that a few far-right politicians can say they fought the good fight. And winning isn't the point anyway.

"Defeat would perhaps be the desired outcome of some of these bill advocates," says Rice University political scientist Mark Jones. "It would allow them to have their cake and eat it too."

Cake: feeding the base without poisoning the business community or antagonzing Bruce Springsteen fans.

Yes, it all comes down to a pathetic exercise in political game-playing. Inauthencity at its finest.

This is the kind of stuff that drove people into Trump's arms in the first place. Sometimes, I don't blame them.