Sen. Tim Scott claimed California wants to take children from parents who reject school-selected pronouns. He also accused Democrats of promoting radical views on gender, religion, and culture. The remarks drew attention because Scott directly linked pronoun disputes with parents losing their children.
Scott did not identify a California law allowing the state to remove children from their parents simply because a parent rejects a school-selected pronoun. A 2023 bill would have required courts to consider a parent’s affirmation of a child’s gender identity in custody decisions, but Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed it.
The statements came during a video segment in which Scott criticized Democrats and defended his broader cultural argument. He described California as an example of what he considered increasingly dangerous policies.
Scott said the state wants to “take away your kids” when parents reject pronouns selected by schools. He also accused the Biden Justice Department of targeting parents who challenged school districts. The Biden-era Justice Department did direct federal officials to address threats against school boards and educators in 2021. Still, Attorney General Merrick Garland said the effort concerned violence and threats of violence, not parents criticizing school policies, which he said was constitutionally protected.
The senator then broadened his criticism beyond schools and parental rights. He said Democrats were “coming for our culture” and described the party as “dangerous, radical and weird.”
Scott also claimed Democrats “literally say there are six genders and God is non-binary.” He framed those issues as part of a larger fight over the country’s direction.
He closed by urging people to “fight for the soul of this country.” Scott added that anyone unwilling to fight had “wet” wood.
Tim Scott Faces Backlash Over California Pronouns Claim
Scott’s remarks prompted sharp challenges to both his characterization of California schools and his broader argument about parental rights.
“Not one word of that garbage is true and only the stupidest amongst us will believe it,” one user wrote. Another California resident stated, “I live in CA and they do not take kids away and schools do not assign pronouns to students.”
Others focused on how Scott presented the issue. “This is blatant, baseless fearmongering,” one response stated.
Another pointed to Scott’s own opening argument: “He says the Democrats will publicly endorse a lie, and then goes on to publicly endorse a lie.”
Scott did not identify a specific California policy or example during the segment. His claim about children being taken from parents remains disputed.
