Rep. Nancy Mace's position on LGBTQ community appears to have changed

Rep. Nancy Mace has recently made headlines and faced protests for her rhetoric around the transgender community, particularly for her efforts to ban transgender women from using women's restrooms at the U.S. Capitol just as the first transgender representative has been elected to Congress.

This month, Mace, R-S.C., used a slur against the transgender community in a video on social media. She used the term in reference to protesters who demonstrated in the halls of Congress against the trans bathroom ban.

Now Mace is back in the headlines for accusing foster youth advocate James McIntyre of assault. According to court documents obtained by ABC News, McIntyre allegedly approached Mace to shake her hand after she spoke at an event to celebrate the 25th anniversary of legislation benefiting foster youth.

Mace claimed to officials that “the subject began to aggressively and in an exaggerated manner shake her arm up and down in a hand shaking motion. The effect of the motion was described as her arm flailing for about 3-5 seconds.”

McIntryre is said to have stated “trans youth deserve advocacy” during the interaction. Mace told police she had pain in her wrists, arm and armpits due to the incident, but refused assistance from paramedics. McIntyre was arrested and has pleaded not guilty to charges of assaulting a government official.

In a post on X following the incident, Mace called McIntyre "a pro-tr*ns man."

Mace's recent remarks appear to be a shift from her comments in years past, when she had referred to herself as “pro-transgender” and “pro-LGBTQ.”

ABC News has reached out to Mace's office for comment.

Prior to the legislation to ban transgender women from Capitol bathrooms, Mace supported the "Fairness for All Act," expressed support for socially transitioning youth and faced backlash for what critics called her pro-transgender support.

2021: Mace says she supports ‘LGBTQ rights and equality’

In an interview with the Washington Examiner in 2021, Mace told a reporter: "I strongly support LGBTQ rights and equality ... no one should be discriminated against."

In the interview, she discussed her opposition to the Equality Act, which would expand federal civil rights laws to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. She instead supported the “Fairness for All Act,” which was aimed at banning discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity but allowing certain exceptions for religious organizations.

According to the outlet, Mace agreed that, for example, secular companies shouldn’t be able to discriminate based on sexual orientation or gender identity – but that religious organizations do not have to “violate their moral or religious conscience,” the outlet wrote.

"It isn’t a black-and-white issue," Mace said in the interview. "I do believe that religious liberty, the First Amendment, gay rights, and transgender equality can all coexist. I’m also a constitutionalist, and we have to ensure anti-discrimination laws don’t violate First Amendment rights or religious freedom."

She told the outlet she has “friends and family that identify as LGBTQ … Understanding how they feel and how they’ve been treated is important. Having been around gay, lesbian, and transgender people has informed my opinion over my lifetime."

At the time, she said younger conservatives were becoming more supportive of LGBTQ rights: “People don’t want the government in their bedrooms or their board rooms."

2022: Mace faces attack ads for her views

In the 2022 primary race, Mace was the subject of political attack ads from the conservative American Principles PAC targeting her for her pro-transgender support.

The ad claimed Mace supported “men in girls’ locker rooms, men in women’s prisons, and even men in battered women’s shelters," referring to transgender women as men.

2023: Mace appears to support social transitioning for minors

In a 2023 interview with CBS News, Mace said: “I'm pro-transgender rights. I'm pro-LGBTQ. Just don't go to the extreme with our kids."

She spoke about her support for bans on gender-affirming care for transgender youth, stating that "sex change surgery, the hormone blockers that sterilize our children. We shouldn't be doing that." Medical experts have said puberty blockers are reversible and do not permanently sterilize patients.

However, Mace appeared to express support for youth who are socially transitioning: “If they wanna take on a different pronoun or a different gender identity or grow their hair out, or wear a dress or wear pants, or do those things as a minor—those are all things that I think most people would support. Be who you want to be, but don’t make permanent changes as a child,” Mace said.

2024: Mace introduces bathroom ban amid rise in anti-LGBTQ sentiment

In November, Mace introduced a measure to ban transgender women from using women’s restrooms at the U.S. Capitol, targeting Rep.-elect Sarah McBride, the first transgender person elected to Congress.

"Yes, and absolutely. And then some," Mace told reporters at the Capitol when asked about whether the legislation was in response to McBride's election.

"I'm not going to stand for a man, you know, someone with a penis, in the women's locker room," she said.

Mace invoked her own experiences as a victim of rape as part of the reason she introduced the measure.

"That's not OK. And I'm a victim of abuse myself. I'm a rape survivor," Mace said. "I have PTSD from the abuse I've suffered at the hands of a man, and I know how vulnerable women and girls are in private spaces, so I'm absolutely 100% going to stand in the way of any man who wants to be in a women's restroom, in our locker rooms, in our changing rooms. I will be there fighting you every step of the way," she said.

McBride responded to the bill on X: "This is a blatant attempt from far right-wing extremists to distract from the fact they have no real solutions to what Americans are facing."

After House Speaker Mike Johnson said transgender women cannot use women's restrooms in the Capitol and House office buildings, McBride responded to imposed rules: "I’m not here to fight about bathrooms. I’m here to fight for Delawareans and to bring down costs facing families. Like all members, I will follow the rules as outlined by Speaker Johnson, even if I disagree with them."

Each representative's office has a private restroom and unisex restrooms are also available throughout the Capitol.

Opponents of the ban say that the narrative around "fear" and "personal safety" concerning transgender use of bathrooms is rooted in discrimination. They argue transgender people aren't inherently dangerous and are actually more likely to be victims of violence than cisgender people.

Mace said she wanted to expand her efforts and push a measure that would ban transgender women from using women's bathrooms on all federal property: "This shouldn't be going on any federal property. If you're a school or an institution that gets government funding, this kind of thing should be banned," she said.

Transgender people -- who make up less than 1% of Americans over the age of 13, according to UCLA's research organization, the Williams Institute -- have been the subjects of hundreds of Republican-backed bills across the country in recent years.

When protesters entered the Capitol to protest efforts to restrict transgender bathroom use in early December, Mace responded with a video on X, where she called protesters a derogatory slur for transgender people.