Kansas State Rep. Susan Ruiz, a Democrat, had a vulgar outburst on the House floor after the legislature voted to override the governor’s veto on a bill requiring students to play on sports teams matching their biological sex.
The new law will apply to students from elementary school through college. It initially passed through the House on February 23, with a margin of 82-40 and one Democrat voting in favor. The Senate passed the bill along party lines on March 9, 28-11.
The bill, HB2238, was vetoed by Gov. Laura Kelly, a Democrat, on March 17.
In a statement about the veto, the governor wrote, “We all want a fair and safe place for our kids to play and compete.”
“Let’s be clear about what this bill is all about — politics. It won’t increase any test scores,” Kelly continued. “It won’t help any kids read or write. It wont help any teachers prepare our kids for the real world. Here’s what this bill would actualy do: harm the mental health of our students.”
On Wednesday, the veto was overridden in the House with a vote of 84-40, thanks to the Republican supermajority. It passed the Senate with a vote of 26-11.
Following the vote, Ruiz stood up and told her Republican colleagues they were “full of s—,” according to a report from the Kansas Reflector.
The report states that “Ruiz said she responded that way because she heard Republican lawmakers laughing after they passed the ban. Ruiz wasn’t happy with the behavior by Rep. Patrick Penn, a Wichita Republican.”
“He came in gloating, and it’s wrong,” Ruiz told the paper. “This is all about wins and losses for them. This is a win for them. They don’t care what kind of a win it is. They don’t care about the unintended consequences. They don’t care that trans kids have a target on their back.”
“They don’t care if LGBTQ+ kids, trans kids, kill themselves because of what they hear around them,” Ruiz continued. “They think that kids aren’t listening to us. They are.”
Democrat Rep. Heather Meyer, who claims to have a transgender child, also stood up wearing a shirt saying “Protect trans youth” after the vote.
