At a conservative youth conference in Arizona on Sunday, US President-elect Donald Trump announced that his administration would officially recognize only two genders, male and female. He vowed to put an end to what he termed “transgender lunacy” on his first day in office.
In his address at Turning Point USA’s annual AmericaFest convention, President-elect Donald Trump took a victory lap and outlined his future policies. Speaking in Phoenix, Arizona, he promised to sign executive orders aimed at eliminating gender-affirming procedures for minors. Trump also pledged to remove transgender individuals from the military. Additionally, he vowed to ban discussions of transgender issues in elementary, middle, and high schools.
Trump also pledged to “keep men out of women’s sports” and stated that the official policy of the U.S. government would recognize only two genders.
While addressing the AmericaFest conference, Trump, who won Arizona in the November election, promised immediate actions against “migrant crime.” He also vowed to label drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations and reiterated his commitment to restoring U.S. control of the Panama Canal.
Transgender issues have sparked controversy in U.S. politics. States governed by Democrats and Republicans have enacted opposing policies on medical treatment and educational materials.
Recently, the U.S. Congress included a provision in the annual defense budget to block funding for certain gender-affirming care for the transgender children of service members.
In his Sunday speech, Trump made extensive promises for his second term. He criticized the previous four years under President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, whom he defeated in the 2024 election.
“On January 20, the United States will turn the page on four long years of failure and decline,” Trump declared. “We will usher in a new era of peace, prosperity, and national greatness,” he added, referring to his upcoming inauguration.
‘Golden Age’
“I will end the war in Ukraine, stop the chaos in the Middle East, and prevent, I promise, World War III,” he added. “The golden age of America is upon us.”
Trump did not provide specifics on how he plans to quickly end the war in Ukraine or bring peace to the Middle East. However, he criticized Panamanian authorities for their handling of the Panama Canal, labeling the fees for its use as “ridiculous.”
If the principles of the 1970s treaty that transferred control of the canal to Panama are not upheld, Trump warned, “we will demand that it be returned to the United States immediately.”
The Panama Canal, a vital route for global commerce, sees thousands of ships passing through each year.
Trump, who often blames Latin American migrants for drug-related problems in the US, reiterated his commitment to launch “the largest deportation operation in American history” upon taking office. He also stated that he would “immediately designate drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations.”
“This criminal network operating on American soil will be dismantled, deported, and destroyed,” Trump asserted.
During his first term in 2019, Trump proposed labeling Mexican cartels as terrorist organizations after the murder of nine American citizens from a Mormon community in Mexico. However, he refrained from taking action after then-Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador requested it.
