The left will stop at nothing to impose destructive gender ideology on our nation. 

So far, President Joe Biden has issued a radical transgender executive order and the Democrat-controlled House just passed the Equality Act—the goal of which is to establish transgender ideology as the new orthodoxy of our day.

It seems his nominee for U.S. health and human services assistant secretary, Pennsylvania Health Secretary Rachel Levine, plans to advance this ideology even further.

Levine’s qualifications have already been questioned. But on Thursday, Levine’s real lack of qualifications was exposed by a question from Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., during Levine’s hearing.

Paul, a licensed ophthalmologist, exposed and decried the “surgical destruction of [minors’] genitalia” taking place in the name of “transgender medicine,” which Levine openly supports. 

He further noted that hormonal interventions, such as puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones, are just as destructive since they permanently alter the body and cause sterilization.

Paul is right to make the comparison between genital mutilation and “transgender care” for minors. In any other case, the physical destruction of a minor’s genitalia as a result of social pressures to conform and be accepted by others would be condemned as genital mutilation. 

Indeed, this is the description of genital mutilation, according to the World Health Organization. Inflicting such irreversible harm to children’s bodies should be condemned for what it is.

When asked point blank whether minors are capable of making—and should be allowed to make—life-altering decisions to change one’s sex with the support of government intervention if necessary, Levine refused to answer.

“Transgender medicine is a very complex and nuanced field, with robust research and standards of care that have been developed,” Levine evaded.

But it’s not complex.

The standards of care Levine recommends are highly controversial and disputed.

The science shows that among children who struggle with gender dysphoria, 80% of girls and 95% of boys will reconcile with their biological sex if they are allowed to go through puberty. 

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Moreover, those who undergo sex-change interventions do not experience lasting benefits with regards to mental health. In fact, they are 19 times more likely to commit suicide.

Additionally, besides sterilization, puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones have been shown to damage cardiovascular health, bone density, and reproductive functions.

Paul was also right to point out the left’s double standard when it comes to approved medicine. 

Democrats refused to entertain COVID-19 treatments that lacked approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, but they seem to have no hesitation about injecting America’s children full of life-altering drugs that are not FDA-approved for treatment of gender dysphoria.

In the end, Levine’s answer demonstrates an unwillingness to engage in a discussion about the scientific reality of “transgender medicine.” It also demonstrates a serious lack of concern about the life-long harm it can cause children. 

The hearing is just further proof that Levine and transgender advocates are driven more by ideology than evidence.

In the coming days—especially since the Equality Act has passed the House and been introduced in the Senate—there will be increasing pressure for conservatives to soften their public stances on gender ideology with more politically correct messaging and legislation. 

Paul’s exchange with Levine should be a reminder that real compassion is incompatible with any compromise that would leave medical doctors, parents, and children vulnerable to the gross violation of human rights that is genital mutilation.

This piece originally appeared in The Daily Signal.