Washington state sues Trump over transgender youth executive order

Washington state has sued the Trump administration over its executive order targeting medical practices for transgender youth.

State Attorney General Nick Brown announced the move Friday morning.

"We are suing today because this order, like so many other things this president is doing, is illegal and unconstitutional," Brown said at a press event. "But having read this order very, very closely, I need to say something more. This president's order is gross. It is disgusting. It is hateful. We will always take action against illegal conduct, but this one has special resonance because of the hate behind it. It promotes harassment and discrimination against people who are already marginalized. It risks their literal health and safety and that of their providers."

RELATED: Seattle Children's halts gender-affirming surgeries after executive order threatens loss of federal funds

Trump signed an executive order on Jan. 28, titled "Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation" (Washington's lawsuit calls this title "false and repugnant," and references it only as "the Order"). The president's order claims that, "Across the country today, medical professionals are maiming and sterilizing a growing number of impressionable children..." The administration argued that children will grow to regret these treatments while being trapped by lifelong medical bills. The order halts federal funding related to any such treatments for youth under the age of 19.

Shortly after the executive order was issued, Seattle Children's Hospital began cancelling scheduled gender-affirming surgeries. Not all hospitals in the region responded in the same way, however. Following the attorney general's announcement Friday, a Seattle Children's spokesperson issued a statement.

“Seattle Children’s is supporting the Washington State Attorney General’s Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) in response to President Trump’s January 28 Executive Order directing federal agencies to revoke funding for institutions providing gender-affirming care (GAC) to minors," the statement reads. "Given the uncertainty surrounding the order's legal authority, we are seeking clarity to safeguard the best interests of Seattle Children’s patients and families, and our workforce, so we can continue to deliver on our mission. We remain committed to caring for our patients and families who need us and engaging in life changing research, while ensuring we operate within all applicable laws.”

Gender-affirming care

Attorney General Brown announced the lawsuit surrounded by families with transgender members.

Luna Crone-Baron, a 19-year-old transgender woman currently attending the University of Washington, shared her own experience receiving gender-affirming care. She said it saved her life.

“There is often a sense of hopelessness, of feeling lost and afraid by the idea that we may not be able to grow up into a body that feels true,” Crone-Baron said.

She described this feeling as a “constant weight” on her shoulders on a child, to the point where she often felt suicidal. At 11, Crone-Baron started receiving gender-affirming care, starting with a “puberty-blocker” implant. She started hormone replacement therapy the following year.

“It was only because of the overwhelming love and support of my family and of my ability to get the care that I needed from my doctor that I am able to be here today,” Crone-Baron told the room, adding that she personally believes President Trump’s executive order will kill trans children.

“That is the gravity of it,” Crone-Baron said. “I think that it is disgusting. I think that it is hateful.”

Washington's lawsuit

Calling the order "a cruel and baseless broadside against transgender youth, their families," and doctors, Washington's lawsuit argues that the action is an "official statement of bigotry from the President that directs agencies to openly discriminate against vulnerable youth on the basis of their transgender status and sex."

Washington filed the lawsuit in federal court for the Western District of Washington, with the states of Minnesota and Oregon, along with three physicians. They are asking the court to place a temporary restraining order to halt the executive action.

The states argue that through the executive order, the president is usurping the legislative power for government spending that belongs to Congress, while overstepping states' "historic police powers to regulate the practice of medicine in violation of the Tenth Amendment."

RELATED: How will Trump's ban on trans athletes in girls’ sports impact Washington state?

The court document argues how each state has been harmed. For Washington, it states:

"Plaintiff State of Washington, through its instrumentality University of Washington (UW), operates a world class medical school that is part of the integrated health system (UW Medicine). UW Medicine is comprised of multiple separate entities sharing a common mission to improve the health of the public. Physicians who are UW School of Medicine faculty provide gender-affirming medical care to adolescents and adults. UW School of Medicine receives approximately half a billion dollars in federal research and education grants, as well as other federal funding. The State of Washington operates the State’s Medicaid and public health programs covering approximately 1.9 million people."

The executive order for transgender youth is not the only action Trump has taken early in his second term regarding trans issues. On his first day in office, he signed an order declaring that the United States only recognizes two sexes, and later an order banning transgender girls from participating in girls school sports.

Attorney General Brown said Friday that his office is looking over all of President Trump's executive orders and considering whether legal action is warranted.

This story was updated to include a statement from a Seattle Children's Hospital spokesperson.

Editor’s Note: This story was updated Friday, Feb. 7, to include additional reporting.