Caitlyn Jenner has been the focus of constant public interest since she first announced her transition last year. Between her E! show I Am Cait and her frequent appearances on Keeping Up With The Kardashians with her children, she is very much in the limelight. However, her discussions with the press have been few and far between. Which is part of what makes a recent interview with Advocate so enlightening. In it, Jenner opens up about everything from her facial feminization surgery to all of the new knowledge she has gained about trans issues since she transitioned. In a particularly interesting passage, Jenner talks about how her conservative political beliefs haven’t changed much since last year.
“I get it. The Democrats are better when it comes to these types of social issues. I understand that.“Number 1, if we don’t have a country, we don’t have trans issues. We need jobs. We need a vibrant economy. I want every trans person to have a job…Socialism did not build this country. Capitalism did. Free enterprise. The people built it. And they need to be given the opportunity to build it back up.”
Not only does she give those kinds of specific details as to why she is still voting for the Republican party despite their iffy track record with trans and women’s issues, she even volunteers a solution that might make their politics more accepting:
“Wouldn’t it be great, let’s say he goes on to be president,” she tells me in relating a conversation on the tour bus. “And I have all my girls on a trans-issues board to advise him on making decisions when it comes to trans issues. Isn’t that a good idea?”
“You’re going to be Ted Cruz’s trans ambassador?” I respond.
“Yes, trans ambassador to the president of the United States, so we can say, ‘Ted, love what you’re doing but here’s what’s going on.’ ”
In the event Cruz ends up edging out Trump for the Republican nomination and makes it all the way to the White House, this doesn’t sound like a half bad idea. If anybody can broaden the somewhat narrow views about gay rights, women’s rights, and trans freedoms that the Republican party has, it’s one of the most high-profile trans celebrities ever. It doesn’t hurt that she’s also a fellow GOP’er. If this all comes to pass the third season of her E! show can change the name to I Am Cait, Trans Ambassador to the President of the United States.
(Via Advocate)