NASHVILLE – Gov. Bill Haslam says that while he thinks Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery “made the right call” in joining 10 other states in suing the Obama administration over its transgender-student bathroom directive, he did not ask him to do so.
“I really didn’t,” the Republican told reporters Thursday. “I think everybody thinks that since Herbert used to work here and I’ve known him a long time. But we really on things like that keep a professional distance. That’s his job to decide if it’s appropriate for the state to decide.
“When he decided that, again, I think he made the right call. But we didn’t talk about that.”
On Wednesday, Slatery joined with counterparts in 10 other states, including Georgia and Alabama, to sue the federal government over its recently released directive and guidance to the nation’s public schools.
It says schools should allow transgender students use bathroom and locker room facilities that match their gender identity and not necessarily their biological sex.