White House: Biden ‘stands by’ plan to pass Equality Act within 100 days
White House said Congress needs to take action on the landmark LGBTQ rights legislation
The White House has confirmed that President Joe Biden is committed to passing landmark LGBTQ rights legislation during his first 100 days.
The Equality Act, which was passed by the U.S. House in 2019, would prohibit discrimination against LGBTQ people in employment, housing, education, credit, and public accommodations.
During the presidential campaign, Biden pledged to pass the Equality Act during his first 100 days in office, and spoke about its importance while campaigning.
In a briefing last week, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki was asked if the president remained committed to that timeframe.
“He stands by it,” Psaki said. “I would say that there’s some actions that need to be taken by Congress, of course.”
Psaki added that the Biden administration was only two weeks old at the time of the briefing, saying, “we have 85 days to go.”
Asked whether the president will pressure Congress to finally pass the bill, Psaki said she didn’t have “any scheduling updates for you at this point in time.”
“I think the president has been out speaking out about a range of issues he’s committed to,” she added, “including many on LGBTQ rights, over the course of the last two weeks of his presidency, and he will continue to be.”
Biden has already taken action to undo some of the anti-LGBTQ actions of the Trump administration, including issuing an executive order on the day he took office protecting LGBTQ from discrimination in the federal government.
Several days later, Biden reversed Donald Trump’s ban on transgender people serving openly in the military, calling the reversal “the right thing to do and…in our national interest.”
Last week, the president committed the United States to advancing and defending the rights of LGBTQI+ people abroad, as part of a series of actions and initiatives designed to realign America’s foreign policy with respect for human rights and place increased emphasis on diplomacy.
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