Ted Cruz responds to Caitlyn Jenner as transgender bathroom war escalates
Ted Cruz has dismissed Caitlyn Jenner's criticism regarding his take on the controversial North Carolina transgender bathroom bills.
Maintaining his stand that transgenders should use bathrooms according to the gender specified on their birth certificate and not on the gender they identify with, Cruz said his primary concern is not the "Caitlyn Jenners of the world," but people who can take advantage of girls in the restrooms.
He cited a law that political rival Donald Trump, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and Pres. Barack Obama reportedly want to pass, which states that "any adult man can go into a girl's restroom if he feels like a woman at that minute."
Such a bill, he said, "opens the door for predators."
"This is not a matter of right or left, or Democrat or Republican. This is common sense. It doesn't make sense for grown adult men, strangers, to be alone in a restroom with a little girl," Cruz told CNN.
In a video posted on her Facebook page, Jenner criticized Ted Cruz after using the women's bathroom at Trump Tower. Last month, Donald Trump was quoted as saying he would allow Jenner to use whatever bathroom she liked in any of his buildings.
On Wednesday, April 27, the reality TV star went to Trump Tower in response to Trump's offer. The video shows her entering the building, searching for the restrooms and entering the women's restroom. When he went out, he left a message for both Trump and Cruz.
"Thank you, Donald. I really appreciate it," Jenner said. "By the way, Ted, nobody got molested."
The fight over transgender bathroom rights has intensified since North Carolina passed into law the Public Facilities Privacy & Security Act (House Bill 2) last month, which mandates transgenders to use bathrooms based on the gender assigned to them at birth and not the gender they identify with.
