Editor’s note: The following essay first appeared in The Play Typer Guy, Stephen’s newsletter about politics and the arts. –JS

Sunday was Easter. You could tell from all the eggs. It was also the International Transgender Day of Visibility, which has been observed on March 31 since 2009. These simultaneous events were the result of the lunar and solar calendars colliding — in other words, a coincidence. However, MAGA doesn’t do coincidence, so President Joe Biden was accused of cancelling Easter and rebranding the holiday as a drag queen brunch celebration.

Daily Caller writer Megan Basham posted on social media, “The Biden White House has declared Easter Sunday ‘trans visibility day.’ No. It is resurrection day. We will not bow to the new gods of your new religion.”

Sunday was a lot more than just mythical resurrection day due to botched crucifixion. Actors Shirley Jones, Rhea Perlman and William “KITT” Daniels were born on March 31, and they’re still allowed a birthday cake. This reaction is bizarre. Actor Nicole Maines, who’s trans, is awesome, but she’s never demanded ritual sacrifice, only basic respect. No bowing required.

Desperate Republican Caitlyn Jenner celebrated her own visibility by demanding that others like her remain invisible. She posted, “I am absolutely disgusted that Joe Biden has declared the most Holy of Holy Days — a self-proclaimed devout Catholic — as Transgender Day of Visibility. The only thing you should be declaring on this day is ‘HE is Risen.’” (In return, Christopher Rufo deadnamed Jenner.)

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It’s not a shock that Republicans would lie, but this is such an obvious, easily spotted lie. It’s like lazy parents who put minimal effort into hiding their kids’ Easter eggs. (I am one of those parents.) If Sen. Tommy Tuberville had any honor, he’d apologize for calling Democrats a “Satanic cult” for reasons that are completely false, but I just explained why he won’t.

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Paul A. Szypula whined on Elon Musk’s blog, “Biden has now essentially canceled Easter by renaming it and not allowing Christian religious symbols at the White House. I wonder what the 63 percent of America that’s Christian thinks about that.”

The supposed Christian majority is decreasing rapidly — probably because of all the obnoxious witch-burning bigots — and could become a dwindling minority within a few decades. That might explain why they’re lashing out at vulnerable people who’ve done nothing to them other than exist, but their actions are still repulsive.

White Christian nationalist House Speaker Mike Johnson joined the hate parade. “The Biden White House has betrayed the central tenet of Easter — which is the resurrection of Jesus Christ,” he posted. “Banning sacred truth and tradition — while at the same time proclaiming Easter Sunday as ‘Transgender Day’ — is outrageous and abhorrent. The American people are taking note.”

First place, Biden didn’t cancel anything. The Easter Bunny’s still free to make off-color jokes at the Chuckle Hut in southwest Florida. 

Parker Molloy at the The Present Age pointed out that these presidential proclamations are numerous, and what Johnson sneeringly called “Transgender Day” wasn’t alone in sharing space with Easter Sunday. It was also Cesar Chavez Day.

It wasn’t just MAGA creeps attacking the Transgender Day of Visibility. Hedge fund manager Bill Ackman, who supported Dean Phillips during the Democratic primaries, declared in fluent concern troll, “Putting aside whatever views one may have on transgenderism, why would you overshadow one of the holiest Christian days of the year to promote another ideology/movement of any kind?”

Trans people don’t exist in conflict with Christianity. Many trans people are Christians themselves and celebrate Easter. They are people, not an “ideology.” However, Ackman continued his separate but equal tirade:

Aren’t there already other days on the calendar acknowledging/celebrating transgenderism?

Why are our state and federal governments launching new holidays that overlap with major holidays of other religious organizations? 

Aren’t there other open days on the calendar?

Why isn’t this just going to lead to more divisiveness in our country?

Please deliver us from the white moderate.

We need the eggs
If you think treating marginalized groups like human beings is a political liability, you’re no better than the trolls.

Inveterate liar New York Congresswoman Elise Stefanik wrote on Saturday, “Joe Biden declares that Easter Sunday is transgender visibility day while he bans Christian symbols from the White House Easter egg roll. Disgraceful. Easter will forever be the celebration of Jesus Christ’s resurrection.”

“Biden is banning religious symbols from Easter celebrations at the White House, while flying the trans flag and declaring Easter Sunday to be ‘Trans Visibility Day,’” Donald Trump Jr posted on what was once Twitter. “This is the left’s new religion. They want people worshiping the trans flag instead of God. They must be stopped.”

On Easter Sunday itself, Trump Jr posted an offensive, hateful meme suggesting former First Lady Michelle Obama is a man. Petty bigotry has always been Trump Jr’s true religion, and it has nothing to do with God.

This is a lot of false witness for an Easter Sunday. Michelle Obama is a beautiful Black woman, and Biden didn’t ban religious-themed eggs from the Easter Egg design contest, despite what so many Republicans claimed. They’re all liars. Yes, overtly religious egg designs aren’t permitted, but these weren’t Biden’s guidelines. They’re the American Egg Board’s and have been in effect since 1976, which means there were no religious egg designs during the Trump presidency. Apparently, eggs must remain neutral.

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Emily Metz, president and CEO of the Egg Board, told Politico, “The American Egg Board has been a supporter of the White House Easter Egg Roll for over 45 years and the guideline language referenced in recent news reports has consistently applied to the board since its founding, across administrations.”

It’s not a shock that Republicans would lie, but this is such an obvious, easily spotted lie. It’s like lazy parents who put minimal effort into hiding their kids’ Easter eggs. (I am one of those parents.) If Sen. Tommy Tuberville had any honor, he’d apologize for calling Democrats a “Satanic cult” for reasons that are completely false, but I just explained why he won’t.

Trump’s Easter blessing
Republicans beating up on trans people for short-term political gain is horrific yet perfectly in character. However, their pious bigotry was less absurd when their leader wasn’t a diseased maniac like Donald Trump.

Karoline Leavitt, Trump’s campaign spokesperson, said the Transgender Day of Visibility was part of “the Biden Administration’s years-long assault on the Christian faith.” This is easy to say when you lie as easily as normal people breathe.

“We call on Joe Biden’s failing campaign and White House to issue an apology to the millions of Catholics and Christians across America who believe tomorrow is for one celebration only — the resurrection of Jesus Christ,” she said. (It’s also typical of white evangelicals to consider Catholics different from “true” Christians.)

Biden actually attended religious services on Easter. There’s no evidence that Trump left his house. Biden’s first message on Easter wished everyone a happy holiday. Trump’s first message smeared retiring GOP Congressman Mike Gallagher. Later, he offered this all-caps rage diarrhea.

HAPPY EASTER TO ALL, INCLUDING CROOKED AND CORRUPT PROSECUTORS AND JUDGES THAT ARE DOING EVERYTHING POSSIBLE TO INTERFERE WITH THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 2024, AND PUT ME IN PRISON, INCLUDING THOSE MANY PEOPLE THAT I COMPLETELY & TOTALLY DESPISE BECAUSE THEY WANT TO DESTROY AMERICA, A NOW FAILING NATION, LIKE “DERANGED” JACK SMITH, WHO IS EVIL AND “SICK,” MRS. FANI “FAUNI” WADE, WHO SAID SHE HARDLY KNEW THE “SPECIAL” PROSECUTOR, ONLY TO FIND THAT HE SPENT YEARS “LOVING” HER, LONG BEFORE THE GEORGIA PERSECUTION OF PRESIDENT TRUMP BEGAN (AND THEREBY MAKING THE CASE AGAINST ME NULL, VOID, AND ILLEGAL!), AND LAZY ON VIOLENT CRIME ALVIN BRAGG WHO, WITH CROOKED JOE’S DOJ THUGS, UNFAIRLY WORKING IN THE D.A.’s OFFICE, ILLEGALLY INDICTED ME ON A CASE HE NEVER WANTED TO BRING AND VIRTUALLY ALL LEGAL SCHOLARS SAY IS A CASE THAT SHOULD NOT BE BROUGHT, IS BREAKING THE LAW IN DOING SO (POMERANTZ!), WAS TURNED DOWN BY ALL OTHER LAW ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITIES, AND IS NOT A CRIME. HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE!

Lisa Boothe on Fox News claimed that having the Transgender Day of Visibility on Easter is “a clear effort and a coordinated effort to remove God from our society,” yet Republicans believe that God would voluntarily remain in a society led by Trump.

It’s not entirely incongruous, though. Bigots have long used religion to justify their own hatred, and Trump is hatred and viciousness personified. He’s the true representation of their faith, not a simple carpenter who preached love and tolerance. Trump’s cruel to the people they hate, and that’s what brings them to their knees.