Texas to sue over Obama’s transgender bathroom directive

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton will announce a legal challenge Wednesday to President Obama’s transgender bathroom directive to public schools, according to The Dallas Morning News. 

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) confirmed the lawsuit, thanking Paxton on Twitter.

“Texas will sue to stop Obama’s transgender directive to schools,” Abbott tweeted Wednesday. “Thanks @KenPaxtonTX.”

Obama’s directive tells public schools they should allow transgender students to use bathrooms that match their gender identities or face losing federal aid for breaching Title IX requirements. 

Conservatives, including Paxton and other high-ranking Texas officials, have blasted the directive as an overreach. 

“If President Obama thinks he can bully Texas schools into allowing men to have open access to girls in bathrooms, he better prepare for yet another legal fight,” Paxton said in a statement earlier this month. 

The “Dear Colleague” letter from the administration, which was sent out to all U.S. public school districts, cites Title IX, which was passed in 1972 and prohibits discrimination in educational programs, including on the basis of gender. 

Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said at the time he believes Title IX doesn’t cover people who are transgender. 

“It was about not discriminating against race, color, religion and sex — the sex that you are, not the sex that you think you are,” Patrick said.

Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Steve King (R-Iowa) also oppose the directive, among others.