This week’s Big Story is about Trump’s vow to end “the transgender lunacy” and promise to define gender as only “male” and “female,” which would effectively erase transgender-identifying humans from official governmental recognition. We also talk about how this makes “reversion” possible—where the government takes away your true gender identity, like the gender marker on a driver’s license, and forces you to go back to the gender identity assigned at birth. The Big Interview is with Joe Scott, an evangelical Christian who serves with me on school board, and who has become a friend. Our friendship is an example of trying to bridge differences, something so needed right now!

The Big Story this week is a continuation of last week’s BS (literally, that’s what it is BS) with 37 Democratic Senators voting to pass the National Defense Authorization Act, including MN’s two Senators, Tina Smith and Amy Klobuchar. As with the House version, the bill passed by the Senate included a provision wiping gender affirming care for transgender youth/dependents of U.S. service members. The Big Interview is with Jules Rayne of Equality Florida who talks about a literal laundry list of anti-trans/LGBQ+ laws passed in FL. And this week’s Random Acts is about my former private investigator turned elementary school aide and mentor—very touching!

In this week’s show, we cover how 81 Democrats—Including MN’s Dean Phillips—voted along with House Republicans to pass the National Defense Authorization Act (e.g., the U.S. Defense budget), which included a provision that prohibits TRICARE, the medical provider for service member family members, from offering gender affirming care to trans youth. This defection of support/loss of allyship for trans humans is a harbinger of things to come…The Big Interview is with Ryan Berg, who talks about ConneQT, a host home program for at risk queer youth ages 16 to 24. This week’s Random Acts is about a group of women outside Pittsburgh who put together a GoFundMe to replace an anti-trans electronic billboard message with one of hope and unity.

Our inaugural show. I lay out the show’s mission, share a little of my background, and address why “Illegal” is part of the show’s name (hint: Project 2025 seeks to outlaw “transgender ideology” whatever the hell that is…). We also cover this week’s oral arguments in U.S. v. Skrmetti, which deals with the question of whether a state can prohibit gender affirming care for transgender youth—and from how the court asked questions, it doesn’t look good. The show will be one of my vehicles to advocate for transgender and gender variant humans everywhere!

Is America at risk of erasing transgender people? Host Ellie Krug tackles this urgent question in her show, The Illegal Trans Woman, while confronting the growing threats to the LGBTQ+ community and the very existence of trans and gender variant individuals. A transgender woman herself, Ellie is a passionate advocate for her community, dedicated to fighting back against intolerance while fostering understanding and compassion for all humans.

With a focus on bridging differences, Ellie invites diverse perspectives, aiming to educate and unify. However, when faced with efforts to erase her community, Ellie becomes a fierce fighter and an unrelenting voice for justice. Tune in Saturdays at 4 PM for thought-provoking conversations that challenge, empower, and inspire action for a more inclusive world. And podcast the show anytime on your favorite app!