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March 11, 2021 | by Chris Cillizza, Lauren Dezenski and Allison Gordon
Republicans think this is their next winning wedge issue
Something important -- and telling -- happened Thursday in Mississippi.
Republican Gov. Tate Reeves signed a bill that bans transgender athletes from playing women's sports at state high schools and universities.
"This important piece of legislation will ensure that young girls in Mississippi have a fair, level playing field in public schools," Reeves said of the legislation, which had passed overwhelmingly through the state House and Senate. "It sends a clear message to my daughters, and all of Mississippi's daughters, that their rights are worth fighting for."
It's the first law of its kind to be passed in 2021. A similar bill has passed the South Dakota Legislature, and Republican Gov. Kristi Noem tweeted earlier this week that she will sign it "very soon."
These are far from isolated efforts. According to the American Civil Liberties Union, 24 states have introduced legislation aimed at limiting transgender athletes from participating in women's sports already this year.
Former President Donald Trump addressed the issue in his speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference last month.
"If this is not changed, women’s sports as we know it will die," he predicted. "They’ll end, it’ll end. … We must protect the integrity of women’s sports. So important. Have to.”
It's not hard to figure out what's going on here. Just like abortion and same-sex marriage in the past, Republicans believe that the idea of transgender athletes can stir up the culture wars again -- rallying their most loyal voters around the idea that their values are being trampled on here.
The Point: Because transgender issues are so new to the public debate, there's not much good data about whether Republicans' attempts to turn transgender athletes into the sort of turnout motivator that abortion has long been for their base will work. What is clear is that they are going to try.
-- Chris
QUOTE OF THE DAY
"We fought a Civil War over this once ... let’s not do it again."
-- ex-Defense Secretary Christopher Miller on the January 6 Capitol insurrection.
ALRIGHT ALRIGHT ALRIGHT Y'ALL
Gov. Matthew McConaughey?
The Texas native and actor, who has starred in films such as the "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" sequel, is considering a run for Texas governor.
The "True Detective" star called it a "true consideration" in a recent podcast interview.
"I'm looking into now again, what is my leadership role?" he said on a recent episode of Crime Stoppers of Houston's "The Balanced Voice" podcast. "Because I do think I have some things to teach and share, and what is my role? What's my category in my next chapter of life that I'm going into?"
The clock is ticking for McConaughey. Current GOP Gov. Greg Abbott is up for reelection in 2022.
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THESE SENATE RETIREMENTS SHOW TRUMP'S STAYING POWER
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CHRIS' GOOD READS
An oral history of March 11, 2020 -- the day everything changed
Why so many politicians are such jerks
Susan Collins isn't a big Chuck Schumer fan
6 lingering questions about the January 6 Capitol riot
Why isn't the vaccination process going faster?
What happened to "Reply All?"
How Prince Harry and Meghan Markle make money
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MUSICAL INTERLUDE
Phoebe Bridgers covering "Summer's End" by the late (and badly missed) John Prine? Holy cow, yes!!!!
Today's episode: The pandemic’s one-year mark.
A LOOK BACK
President Joe Biden will deliver his first prime-time address tonight, marking one year since the Covid-19 pandemic began shutting down the nation. Let's take a look at what the world looked like on this day a year ago.
On March 11, 2020, Dr. Anthony Fauci -- then unknown to most Americans -- warned a maskless Congress that “it’s going to get worse.” Meanwhile, the stock market floundered; within a minute of the opening bell, the Dow Jones plunged more than 700 points. Citi’s CEO resisted calls for alarm by saying, "This is not a financial crisis.”
Narrator: It was definitely a crisis.
By nightfall, then-President Trump addressed the nation from the Oval Office and announced a halt on most travel from Europe, just hours after the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus a global pandemic.
Now, one year later, Biden's televised address will come hours after he signed his landmark $1.9 trillion stimulus bill to deal with the ongoing impacts of the virus.
ONE BIG SPEECH
1 week
President Biden has spent the last week line-editing drafts of tonight's speech, airing at 8 p.m. Eastern.
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