Every record has been destroyed or falsified, every book rewritten, every picture has been repainted, every statue and street and building has been renamed, every date has been altered. And the process is continuing day by day and minute by minute. History has stopped. Nothing exists except an endless present in which the party is always right.
Republican AK governor vetoes transphobic law adopted under the guise of protecting minors from mutilation
A rare ray of hope for the future of gender-affirming procedures in red states
Arkansas' Republican governor on Monday vetoed an anti-transgender health care bill that would've prohibited physicians in the state from providing gender-affirming "procedures" for trans people under age 18.
Gov. Asa Hutchinson told reporters that he killed HB 1570 because the bill "would be and is a vast government overreach" and because it would've created "new standards of legislative interference with physicians and parents as they deal with some of the most complex and sensitive matters involving young people".
The governor called the legislation "a product of the cultural war in America", adding that his veto comes even though he believed the bill was "well-intended".
CNN has reached out to the bill's sponsor for comment on the governor's veto.
The governor predicted during his remarks that the state's Republican-controlled General Assembly "will likely override" his veto, noting it takes only a simple majority to do so.
LGBTQ and medical advocates had lobbied aggressively against HB 1570, which they feared could have significant negative impacts on trans youth, who have a much greater risk of suicide, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. However, if they have access to a puberty blocker, their chances of suicide and mental health problems in the immediate term and down the road decline significantly, a study the CDC published in January of 2020 found.
Arkansas' Republican governor on Monday vetoed an anti-transgender health care bill that would've prohibited physicians in the state from providing gender-affirming "procedures" for trans people under age 18.
