7 Things: Travel bans to stop the coronavirus aren’t racist now, lockdown-happy states continue to suffer economically with little benefit, possibility of a special session and more …

7. Caitlyn Jenner has to be transphobic

• Former Olympic athlete and reality TV star Caitlyn Jenner has announced that he will be running for governor of California, and now he’s come out against transgender girls playing in girls’ sports. 
• Jenner, who is transgender, said, “It just isn’t fair. And we have to protect girls’ sports in our schools.” Five states have already passed laws to prohibit transgender girls from playing in girls’ sports, and now Jenner has received backlash from the transgender community for not being more of an advocate. 

6. 2022 messages heard over the weekend in Utah and Texas

• While U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) was able to beat back a censure attempt by fellow Utah Republicans 798 to 711, he was still met with jeers and claims that he was a traitor as he was booed off stage. Romney responded by stating, “I’ve been a Republican all my life. My dad was the governor of Michigan and I was the Republican nominee for president in 2012.”
• In Texas, a special election was held for Texas’ 6th Congressional District. It saw Republicans take a 61-19 majority with two GOP candidates advancing to a runoff in a district that was a +6 Trump in 2020. The “Never Trump” Republican received 4% of the vote and the Trump-backed candidate led the pack.

5. Final phase of bringing troops back has started — sort of

• President Joe Biden had previously set the deadline for removing all United States and NATO troops from Afghanistan for May 1, and over the weekend, the final stage of withdrawing started. 
• Troops have already been in the process of leaving Afghanistan the with the original deadline being later this year. When Biden gave the order to withdraw troops sooner, there were about 7,000 NATO and 2,500-3,500 United States troops in the country. But even as the withdrawal starts, it is expected that the United States will maintain a presence and some control over the country.

4. Special session is unlikely, or is it?

• Even though it appears the state of Alabama could be heading to a special session on gambling, State Senator Chris Elliot (R-Daphne) recently discussed the likelihood of a special session for the legislature, even if some of the bigger issues like prisons and gaming aren’t dealt with this session. 
• On the topic, Elliot said he doesn’t “anticipate a special session on gaming or anything like that if they’re left unresolved this session.” It’s still possible that a prison bill could be passed before the end of the session, but time in this session is almost up. 

3. Marshall calls to dismiss the lawsuit over prison leasing plan

• State Auditor Jim Zeigler joined three others in a lawsuit against Governor Kay Ivey over her current plan to lease out the building of three new prisons for the state. Attorney General Steve Marshall is now asking for this lawsuit to be dismissed. 
• Marshall said the lawsuit was “strategically timed but legally meritless claims.” Zeigler has based the lawsuit on the idea that it creates debt for the state in an unconstitutional way, but lawyers for Marshall said since it’s a year-to-year agreement, it’s legal in terms of the constitution. It was also noted that with the lawsuit only coming now, and not closer to when Ivey signed the agreement on February 1, it’s strategically planned to delay financing. 

2. The evidence against lockdowns continues to mount

• This weekend, it became clear that powerful teachers’ union activists were able to control policy at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A report compared states with severe restrictions and states that were more open and found very little difference.
• The Wallet Hub study showed that that the states with the strongest restrictions have some of the highest unemployment rates, but differences in death rates aren’t that different. The study found that limiting travel, restricting restaurants and closing non-essential businesses did nothing but harm the economy of the states that stuck with it.

1. 2020 Biden thinks 2021 Biden is a racist

• Coronavirus cases in India have increased dramatically, so President Joe Biden has banned travel to the United States from India. Previously, Biden said travel bans “will not stop” the coronavirus. 
• Former President Donald Trump was also called xenophobic by Biden when he banned travel from China during the pandemic, but Biden has not received such criticism.