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JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri's two Republicans vying for attorney general on Monday slammed the Obama administration for a directive aimed at protecting bathroom access for transgender students.
Attorney Josh Hawley and state Sen. Kurt Schaefer spoke in a debate aired on Columbia-based Zimmer Radio against guidance issued by leaders at the Justice and Education departments that tells public schools to allow transgender students to use the restrooms that match their gender identities, not sex at birth.
The administration's guidance does not impose any new legal requirements, but officials say it's meant to clarify expectations of school districts that receive funding from the federal government. It comes amid a legal battle with the Department of Justice over a North Carolina law requiring transgender people to use public bathrooms, showers and changing rooms that correspond to the sex on their birth certificate.
"President Obama doesn't realize that he doesn't get to write the law," Hawley said.
Schaefer said the administration is cheapening the Civil Rights Act by applying protections "to somebody who feels like they're the opposite sex this day or that day."
Schaefer called it "the epitome of the most recent lunacy of a combination of political correctness and federal overreach."
Hawley and Schaefer are set to face off Aug. 2 in the Republican primary. They're hoping to replace Democratic Attorney General Chris Koster, who is running for governor. Nixon, a Democrat, is barred by term limits from running.
Democrats Teresa Hensley, a former Cass County prosecutor, and St. Louis County Assessor Jake Zimmerman also are running for attorney general.
During the Monday debate, the Republican candidates also spoke against legalizing marijuana and abortions.
Hawley and Schaefer, who share similar stances on issues, are trying to emphasize their different backgrounds. Hawley, who took a leave of absence from work as an associate professor at the University of Missouri School of Law to run for attorney general, would be a first-time officeholder. Schaefer was first elected to the Senate in 2008, is the Senate Appropriations Committee chairman and previously served as an assistant attorney general.
The general election is Nov. 8.
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