---

John Bachman with TCC President Jim Pfaff Newsmax

Published: March 14, 2025
Network: The Conservative Caucus
Analysis: Conservative Caucus President Jim Pfaff

---

A contentious confrontation on Capitol Hill over how to address the nation’s first transgender member of Congress has ignited a fierce debate about biological sex policies in the House of Representatives. Conservative Caucus President Jim Pfaff joined Newsmax’s John Bachman to discuss the heated exchange between Texas Congressman Keith Self and Massachusetts Representative William Keating, which centered on Speaker Mike Johnson’s policy requiring members to be referred to by their biological sex on the House floor.

Topics Covered

• The Transgender Member of Congress Controversy
• Democratic Overreactions and Historical Perspective
• Trump’s Cultural Impact and Celebrity Endorsements
• Key Takeaways

The Transgender Member of Congress Controversy

The House floor descended into chaos when Congressman Keith Self of Texas introduced Delaware Representative Sarah McBride according to the chamber’s new biological sex policy. The exchange, which abruptly ended a hearing, saw Massachusetts Democrat William Keating demand that Self repeat his introduction and accusing the chairman of being “out of order” before dramatically asking, “Have you no decency?”

“Keith Self from Texas simply mentioned the fact that there’s a policy now on the floor to refer to men and women by their biological sex.”
— Jim Pfaff, President, The Conservative Caucus

The policy, implemented under Speaker Mike Johnson’s leadership, reflects the Speaker’s stated belief that “men can’t become women.” McBride, who made history as the first openly transgender member of Congress, has become the focal point of this broader debate about biological reality versus gender identity in official government proceedings. Political commentator Alexis Wilkins, joining the Newsmax discussion, characterized the Democratic response as evidence of their struggle to cope with diminishing power. “We are seeing winning,” Wilkins noted, pointing to the Democratic Party’s current 21% public approval ratings as context for their increasingly dramatic reactions to Republican policies.

Democratic Overreactions and Historical Perspective

The discussion expanded to include Senator Bernie Sanders’ recent claim that the United States has become “more dangerous to live in than any time in his life” thanks to President Trump and Elon Musk’s influence. Pfaff and the panel found this assertion particularly absurd given Sanders’ age and the historical periods he has lived through. As Bachman pointed out, Sanders was alive during the Holocaust, making his characterization of 2025 as the “scariest time” in his life seem dramatically disconnected from reality. Wilkins elaborated on what she sees as Democratic desperation:

“This just shows that their inflation of what’s going on and their power and their control that they thought they have is slipping from them.”
— Alexis Wilkins, Political Commentator

The panel also addressed the lighter side of Trump’s return to power, including an exchange in the Oval Office where President Trump joked with the Irish Prime Minister about Rosie O’Donnell’s recent move to Ireland. O’Donnell, who has been a vocal Trump critic for decades, announced she relocated to Ireland on January 15th and is pursuing Irish citizenship. Pfaff offered a sobering perspective on O’Donnell’s choice: “The situation in Ireland isn’t all that good for their citizens. I have a really good friend who’s been outspoken politically there who is now under threat because of laws that Ireland has passed that are frankly censorship laws.”

Trump’s Cultural Impact and Celebrity Endorsements

The conversation shifted to what Pfaff and the panel see as significant cultural victories for conservatives. Rapper Lil Yachty recently called Black Lives Matter “a scam” during an internet cooking show, while System of a Down’s John Dolmayan publicly expressed support for President Trump, saying he would “bring sanity back.” However, the panel agreed these endorsements, while positive, no longer constitute major news because the cultural landscape has shifted so dramatically. As Bachman noted, “No one’s getting cancelled, no one’s getting kicked out of their band for supporting President Trump anymore. In fact, season one of The Apprentice is now on Amazon Prime.” Wilkins emphasized the strategic value of not over-celebrating these cultural wins: “The less that we make this a huge deal in culture, the more it’s going to happen. When people were getting cancelled, the left was plastering it on every front page. Almost mitigating the cultural side and saying yeah, we kind of won the culture thing and we’re going to move on to the next argument—I think that’s okay.” Pfaff invoked Rush Limbaugh’s famous observation about liberalism and concluded, “I think America chose Republicans in November for many reasons, and I’ll just leave it at that.”

Key Takeaways

1. Biological Sex Policy Stands – Speaker Mike Johnson’s policy requiring members to be addressed by their biological sex on the House floor remains in effect despite Democratic protests, with the transgender member of Congress at the center of the controversy.
2. Democratic Desperation – With approval ratings at 21%, Democrats are resorting to increasingly hyperbolic rhetoric, exemplified by Bernie Sanders claiming 2025 is more dangerous than any period in his lifetime, including the Holocaust era.
3. Cultural Momentum Shift – The normalization of Trump support among celebrities and entertainers signals a fundamental change in American culture, with conservatives now dominating the cultural conversation without fear of cancellation.
4. Policy Over Theatrics – Republicans are focusing on implementing substantive policy changes rather than engaging in the dramatic confrontations that characterized previous political eras, confident in their electoral mandate from November 2024.
5. International Perspective – The appeal of relocating to countries like Ireland may be misguided, as those nations face their own challenges with censorship laws that threaten free speech more severely than current U.S. policies.

---

Share This Analysis

About The Conservative Caucus:
The Conservative Caucus is a grassroots public policy action organization, formed in 1974. Headed by President Jim Pfaff, the Caucus is committed to advancing free enterprise, limited government, and traditional values.

Originally broadcast March 14, 2025 on The Conservative Caucus.