STEPHANIE RHULE (HOST): You’re a civil rights attorney, what's your take on this?
SEEMA IYER: It's shocking because, your question was why now, right? The policy has been that if you're openly transgender and you're able to serve, you can serve. So when you say why now, I am suspecting that perhaps there was some impetus, that something happened on the battlefield or something happened during training to cause other members of the military or civilians some type of harm, and then there would be a reason to change the policy. But without a reason to change the policy, there's no reason to change it except for the fact that he's looking for a distraction from Russiagate, right?
MAYA HARRIS: But, I mean, you have to also put this in the broader context as well, which is this is part of a pattern. At the beginning of the administration, the administration also stepped back on the protection of transgender students, and so I think that you really do have to also put it in the broader context. I'm sure there's no doubt that the timing of this could potentially be because there's a reason or because it helps to show the base that don't worry, I'm still working on your agenda even though I'm berating your beloved attorney general, you know, in public. But in the broader context, this is part of a pattern of actually removing protections and undermining the rights of LGBT people.
