On Wednesday, Caitlyn Jenner went to Capitol Hill in Washington, DC to talk to Republican lawmakers about issues of concern to the LGBT community. While a number of representatives reportedly met with Jenner, only one has come forward admitting they met with the transgender activist.
Jenner shared a photo of her trip to Washington on Instagram, showing her and Republican gay rights activist Margaret Hoover in front of the Capitol building. She captioned the photo, “Big day at Capitol Hill. @m_hoov and I got to chat with a few #Republican reps about #LGBT issues. It's a time for change!”
https://instagram.com/p/BKW07Ewhq1Z/
Jenner and Hoover were taking meetings in coordination with billionaire Paul Singer's conservative LGBT rights Super PAC American Unity Fund. Hoover is the president of American Unity Fund.
Among those with whom Jenner and Hoover met was South Florida Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, who became a co-sponsor of the Equality Act last Friday. Ros-Lehtinen was the only Republican congress member who as of this posting has come forward as saying they met with Jenner. Ros-Lehtinen has a transgender son, Rodrigo.
Ros-Lehtinen shared photos of her meeting with Jenner and Hoover on Twitter, writing, “Met @Caitlyn_Jenner about her gender transition story + how we can help #trans Americans live as their true selves.”
Met @Caitlyn_Jenner about her gender transition story + how we can help #trans Americans live as their true selves pic.twitter.com/794OloW0P0
— Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (@RosLehtinen) September 15, 2016
Spoke w @Caitlyn_Jenner @AmericanUnity @zackarydrucker @TransEquality abt impt of inclusive policies 4 #LGBT cmty pic.twitter.com/dQuBPWYrVc
— Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (@RosLehtinen) September 15, 2016
According to CNN, Ros-Lehtinen was not willing to identify any of the other Republican congressmen whom Jenner met with:
“She talked about her faith and her journey and how the Republican Party should be open to hearing these kinds of stories,” Ros-Lehtinen said after the meeting, noting that LGBT issues can be difficult for those in her party. “Caitlyn is going to continue this outreach and I think it's a positive message of love and outreach.”
The Florida Republican told reporters other GOP members attended the meeting with Jenner, but she declined to identify who they were, saying she wasn't sure they wanted to discuss the session.
