Laurel Libby, the censured Republican in Maine’s Democrat-led House of Representatives, says the House leadership’s response to her lawsuit is just a “red herring.” Now she hopes the Supreme Court will validate her claim.
Libby was disciplined by House Democrats in February for posting a photo of biological male John Rydzewski, who now goes by the name "Katie Spencer" after choosing to identify as a female. The censure means Libby cannot speak on the House floor or vote, actions that impact the 9,000 constituents in her district.
A junior at Greely High School in Cumberland, the young man in February won first place in the pole vault with a jump of 10-feet, 6-inches in Maine’s Class B girls championship meet. That was half a foot ahead of two girls who would have shared the state championship but instead tied for second place.
That’s the irony that Libby was pointing out when she published Rydzewski/Spencer’s photo in a Facebook post.
The vote to censure passed 75-73 with all Democrats voting in favor of restricted rights for Libby and all Republicans voting against.
The defendants in Libby’s lawsuit, Maine House Speaker Ryan Fecteau and House Clerk Robert Hunt, say Libby is being punished for her conduct – for posting the photo of the young man – and that she would be restored to all rights and privileges if she simply apologized.
She has refused.
The young man chose to participate in a public event, Libby pointed out Friday on Washington Watch.
“Think about how public a state championship is and all of the photos that are taken and shared by the press, by social media. The photos that I shared were public photos,” she told show host Jody Hice.
"Like other censures of Maine House members, the censure resolution required Rep. Libby to apologize for her conduct – not recant her views. Rep. Libby has steadfastly refused to comply with this modest punishment, which is designed to restore the integrity and reputation of the body," Fecteau and Hunt have said in response via Fox News.
"Her refusal places her in breach of a centuries-old rule of the Maine House, Rule 401(11), that Rep. Libby previously agreed, along with all of her House colleagues, would govern House proceedings," they continued. "Rule 401(11) provides that a member found by the body to be in breach of its rules may not participate in floor debates or vote on matters before the full House until they have 'made satisfaction,' i.e., here, apologized for their breach."
Government can’t compel speech
Libby, now serving her third term in the House, won’t apologize for not apologizing.
“The First Amendment protects my right to speak – and just as importantly, my right not to be compelled to say something I do not believe," she said in a statement to Fox News.
What House Democrats really do not like is the spotlight shining on their own views, she stated.
“The real problem the Democrats have is that this highlighted an ongoing issue in Maine, the fact that Maine women and girls are being discriminated against – and they didn't like that coming to light. This was a censure done in political retaliation.”
Libby has an appeal pending in the First Circuit that she hopes will restore her to all rights and privileges as a state representative. She has filed an emergency application with the Supreme Court asking the Court to restore her vote in the Maine House. Attorneys general from 15 states have filed an amicus brief with the Supreme Court in support of Libby.
The Libby case is the epicenter of a U.S. Justice Department lawsuit against the State of Maine and Gov. Janet Mills for defiance of President Donald Trump’s executive order to keep biological males out of girls and women’s sports and for what the Trump administration says are violations of Title IX, the landmark 1972 legislation advancing women’s rights.
Earlier this month, the administration settled a lawsuit by the state against the Department of Agriculture over a freeze of federal funds that the state said impacted a child nutrition program. John Woodcock, a U.S. District Court Judge in Maine appointed by George W. Bush, in April issued a temporary restraining order instructing the Trump administration to unfreeze the USDA funds allocated to Maine.
Libby says her case has major ramifications not only in Maine but across the country.
“If you think about a majority party being allowed to silence a member of the minority, a simple majority vote, that would be a very dangerous precedent to set. That’s why we have to fight this,” she said.
West Virginia AG John McCuskey led the filing of the amicus brief. AGs from South Carolina, Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma and Virginia have signed on.
The brief argues legislative immunity does not apply in Libby’s case because her vote belongs to the people and not her, claiming that her constituents in Maine House District 90 are the ones being hurt.
The attorneys general claim the actions taken against Libby are “a flagrant violation of our constitutional right to equal representation.”
Maine citizens take matters into their own hands
In addition to support from the AGs, two school districts in Maine have amended their local sports gender eligibility policies to ban biological males from girls’ competitions, Fox News reported.
“We've seen two school districts so far vote to uphold Title IX and ensure that they are not discriminating against our young women here participating in sports, and they will be complying with Title IX, which all of our school districts should be,” Libby said.
Libby said Mills has taken an extreme position.
“As folks know, Gov. Mills here in Maine has gone way out on a limb and is prioritizing allowing biological males to participate in girls' sports. So, I'm glad to see individual school districts standing up and saying that they will protect our young women,” she concluded.
