‘Issue of our time’: Biden tries to win over transgender community with a tweet while Sanders deals with Rogan endorsement fallout

Joe Biden’s attempt to appeal to the wokest Democrats with a pandering tweet about “transgender rights” has been seen as little more than exploitation by critics.

“Let’s be clear: Transgender equality is the civil rights issue of our time. There is no room for compromise when it comes to basic human rights,” Joe Biden tweeted to his four million-plus followers over the weekend.

Such a sentiment from a politician fighting for the Democrat Party’s presidential nomination would seem appropriate in today’s virtue signaling times, but Biden’s tweet has sparked heavy controversy for its pandering nature. Not only that, it noticeably landed in the midst of his competitor Bernie Sanders’ being called out by some on the left for touting an endorsement from podcaster and comedian Joe Rogan.

“Pretty amusing to watch Biden lurch for the ultra-woke lane to try to capitalize off of this whole dumb Rogan controversy. He literally brags about his work with segregationists!” journalist Krystall Ball tweeted in response to Biden. The tweet was reposted by actor John Cusack, who has been campaigning for Sanders. 

The reference was clearly to Biden patting himself on the back for having been able to work with segregationist senators in the ‘70s, one of his many controversial remarks on the campaign trail.

Transgender YouTuber and commentator Blaire White replied to Biden’s “transgender tweet” by questioning whether the former vice president even knows what transgender means.

“I don't exactly buy Joe Biden as a steadfast champion of transgender equality, but it's a good example of how politicians often reach good policy positions not because they are good people, but because they are strategic actors responding to incentives,” author Steven White added. 

Biden’s tweet has suspicious timing as it was sent out amidst controversy surrounding Sanders releasing a video touting an endorsement from comedian and podcaster Joe Rogan, who has over seven million subscribers on YouTube.

While Rogan is a massively popular and influential commentator, and has had everyone from Andrew Yang to Ben Shapiro on his show, his support of Bernie has raised concerns of some on the left as he’s made controversial statements, including some about transgender athletes. 

Rogan has made comments in the past specifically critical of genetically born males being allowed to compete in athletics – especially fighting – against genetically born females. It’s these comments that has led outlets like CNN to label him as a commentator with past “transphobic” statements. 

"If you want to be a woman in the bedroom and, you know, you want to play house and all of that other s**t and you feel like you have, your body is really a woman's body trapped inside a man's frame and so you got an operation, that's all good in the hood," said Rogan at one point on his show. "But you can't fight chicks." 

Progressive group MoveOn has even called on Sanders to “apologize” for touting an endorsement from Rogan.  

While the backlash to Rogan’s endorsement might have been a perfect moment for Biden to try and win some votes, he also doesn’t quite have the record to back his words up or make him the shining hero for the woke crowd. 

The former vice president has been criticized for past votes in support of both The Defense of Marriage Act, which defined legal marriage as being between one man and one woman, and a spending bill that included the “don’t ask, don’t tell” military policy.

Biden got into a tense exchange when questioned about his actual commitment to the LGBTQ community, as well as calling Mike Pence a “decent guy,” at a forum hosted by GLAAD, the Advocate, and the Cedar Rapids Gazette last September. 

This comes on top of numerous eyebrow-raising gaffes and stunts that have been haunting Biden on the campaign trail.

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