Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville stood on the floor of the U.S. Senate this week and spent nearly 20 minutes warning the country about a threat he says is hiding in plain sight: airline pilots who might secretly identify as furries. He got there by way of a much darker message, calling transgender people "deranged," demanding the return of mental institutions, and suggesting doctors who provide gender-affirming care belong in prison.
A Rant Built on a Recycled Myth
Standing beside a poster reading "Transgenderism Is a Mental Disease" decorated with a pregnant man emoji, Tuberville opened by refusing to even say the word "transgender," insisting the term implies someone can change their "God-given sex." From there he escalated fast, calling transgender identity "not normal," a "cry for help," and something society should stop "affirming." Then came the pivot that made headlines: his claim that transgender people and furries overlap so much that airline passengers should worry their pilot might be secretly dressed as an animal.
It's not a new smear. Right-wing politicians have leaned on furry-related misinformation as an anti-trans talking point for years, most infamously the debunked claim that schools were installing litter boxes for students who identify as cats. Tuberville's speech simply recycled that playbook with a new target: the cockpit.
Tuberville's comments reveal his desperation to keep the narrative focused on culture war issues, instead of trying to solve the real problems Alabamians are facing.
Tris Wilson, Alabama Trans Rights Coalition
From Sports Bans to Talk of Institutions
This isn't a one-off outburst. Tuberville has spent years building toward it: he's claimed Democrats want to make women "extinct," pushed unsubstantiated stories about entire men's sports teams transitioning to compete against women, and said transgender children should "live in fear" of their own parents. He first introduced a federal ban on trans athletes in girls' sports in 2023, reintroduced it in 2025, and has watched Democrats block it both times even as similar bans have spread through state legislatures.
This week he went further, calling doctors who treat trans patients guilty of malpractice deserving of revoked licenses and prison time, and arguing it's
Sources: Queerty, them., The Advocate
Cover photo: United States Senate, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
