The Supreme Court is on a roll issuing wins that protect the most vulnerable among us. Just today — three years after the Dobbs decision — the Court handed down a pro-life victory in the case of Medina v. Planned Parenthood. South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster signed an executive order to prohibit state Medicaid funds to Planned Parenthood to protect life. Unsuccessfully, a patient sued to have Planned Parenthood reinstated as a “qualified provider”. The majority of Justices clearly understand not only the value of life, but also the importance of state sovereignty as outlined in our Constitution. Another example of this is the Court’s decision last week to uphold Tennessee’s right to protect children from bodily mutilation. We are definitely not tired of all the winning!
In 2023, the Tennessee state legislature made the protection of children a top priority. The first bills the State legislature considered were to prohibit gender transition procedures on minors. The language restricted medical professionals from prescribing puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgeries if used to change “gender”. After passing both chambers, Governor Bill Lee signed the bill into law, making Tennessee the 25th state to pass such legislation. At the time, however, Biden’s weaponized Department of Justice (DOJ) placed this law in their crosshairs and challenged the provisions regarding puberty blockers and cross sex hormones as unconstitutional. Interestingly, the ban on surgeries was not challenged and was allowed to go into effect.
The DOJ asked the District Court for Middle Tennessee to halt the implementation of the law, claiming it violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution. This tied up the law in litigation for two years — until last week. The Supreme Court issued a 6-3 decision in the case, United States v. Skrmetti, that protects the right of the state to prohibit gender transition procedures on minors. The six Justices upholding the Tennessee law ruled that classifications based on age and medical conditions are not subject to “heightened scrutiny” like matters of sex must be. The dissenters — Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson- used the 2020 case of Bostock v. Clayton County that redefined sex to include “gender identity” under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act to justify their position. However, the other six Justices agreed that Bostock only pertained to federal employment. They clarified that the Tennessee law applies to males and females equally — neither can use puberty blockers or hormones to “change gender” but both can use them for other medical reasons.
Justice Clarence Thomas sharply criticized the aggressive political antics surrounding this case by saying in his concurrence:
This case carries a simple lesson: In politically contentious debates over matters shrouded in scientific uncertainty, courts should not assume that self-described experts are correct.
Eagle Forum of Tennessee’s President Bobby Patray worked tirelessly to see Senate Bill 1 passed into law. She stated in a press release:
We are so glad that Tennessee led the way on this important issue and now some real changes can be made. We are very proud of our Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti and his staff for their incredible defense of the law and our children. We are so glad this will open doors for other states to follow in our footsteps. It’s a huge win, and Tennessee Eagle Forum is pleased to have advocated on behalf of this important legislation.
This has already produced positive implications for the other states that have passed these important laws. Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador announced the same day as the ruling that the lawsuit against the state’s Vulnerable Child Protection Act would be dismissed. West Virginia Attorney General J.B. McCuskey announced that the ruling would bolster a win in two lawsuits pertaining to the protection of women in sports and prohibiting Medicaid payments toward gender transitioning procedures.
U.S. House and Senate Republicans have been doing their part to protect children as well. Senator Roger Marshall (R-KS) introduced the No Subsidies for Gender Transition Procedures Act (S. 1551), which prohibits taxpayer dollars from funding these egregious procedures through various programs such as Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Representative Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) has a similar bill called the Do No Harm in Medicaid Act (H.R. 498) that specifically targets the Medicaid program. The language in these bills was inserted into two recent bills. The first was the One Big, Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1), also known as the reconciliation bill, which has passed the House and awaits a vote in the Senate. Also, in the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, “MilConVA” (H.R. 3944), these types of procedures are prohibited for all ages. MilConVA passed the House this week. Both bills prohibit funds for abortions as well.
In the same vein, another case to watch is Chiles v. Salazar, which will be argued in front of the Supreme Court in the fall. Counselor Kaley Chiles has been censored in her profession because of state and local laws prohibiting mental health professionals from getting to the root problems of gender dysphoria and instead mandates that she “affirm their gender identity” instead of their biological sex. Alliance Defending Freedom is representing Kaley Chiles. Kristin Waggoner, President of ADF explained, “Colorado’s law prohibits what’s best for these children and sends a clear message: the only option for children struggling with these issues is to give them dangerous and experimental drugs and surgery that will make them lifelong patients. We are eager to defend Kaley’s First Amendment rights and ensure that government officials may not impose their ideology on private conversations between counselors and clients.” The Trump Department of Justice is supporting Kaley Chiles and her free speech rights in the case.
These Supreme Court cases are incredibly important as our federal and state governments pass laws to protect children and families. We urge you to stay informed and stay involved. A great way to do that is to join us in Washington, DC, on September 8-11, for Eagle Council 53, our national conference, where you will have the opportunity to share with your federal elected officials how these issues impact you and your community. For more information, check out our Eagle Council page here. We would love for you to join us!
