Transgender Rep. Sarah McBride (D-DE) just passed her first bill in Congress with complete bipartisan support that is, not a single Republican or Democrat voted against it.McBride cosponsored The Equal Opportunity for All Investors Act with Reps. Mike Flood (R-NE), Cleo Fields (D-LA), Mike Lawler (R-NY), and Shri Thanedar (D-MI). The legislation, which now heads to the Senate, aims to enable Americans to become accredited investors through an examination. The financial and professional criteria currently in place such as having a net worth of $1 million, an individual income over $200,000 for at least two years, or a marital income of over $300,000 for at least two years exclude massive swaths of the population. Related These nonbinary legislators are revolutionizing state politics Their work is pivotal as legislative bodies and our federal government work to restrict identity to the gender binary. Our bill will unlock capital for entrepreneurs and small business owners whove been left out for far too long,McBride said in a statement celebrating the bills passage by the House. Current law allows only millionaires to invest in private markets shutting out countless Americans, especially women, veterans, and people of color, based on wealth, not knowledge. Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. Subscribe to our Newsletter today In my state, the Delaware Black Chamber of Commerce has told me that this legislation would help close the capital gap for diverse business owners, she added. Small business leaders say that its not a lack of ideas, but a lack of capital, that holds them back. Our bill opens up new sources of funding from a pool of investors more reflective of the community, so these founders can turn vision into jobs and economic growth.She also praised the bill which passed by voice vote as an example of the kind of bipartisan, common-sense policy that Congress should be focused on. The unanimous passage of the bill is a big deal considering the intense anti-trans abuse McBride has experienced from her Republican colleagues since becoming the first out trans person elected to Congress. As the ferocity of partisan politics has grown, many on the right have more or less refused to support any legislation championed by Democrats, even when it would be beneficial to all Americans. That hesitation, combined with the added right-wing vitriol for McBride due to her trans identity, could have led Republicans to tank the bill just because her name was on it. Although the Republican cosponsors of the bill undoubtedly helped it garner GOP support, it is still a positive step. It also affirms McBrides repeated declarations that she is committed to ignoring the hate and focus on one thing only: making life better for Americans. McBrides reaction to her colleagues anti-trans abuse has divided the trans community. Many activists have expressed disappointment that she has decided to ignore it rather than actively resist it, but McBride continues to defend her approach.In November, she said she would comply with the GOPs vicious ban on trans women using womens bathrooms at the Capitol and cautioned Americans not to be deceived by the rights obsession with her. I think we are all united that attempts to attack a vulnerable community are not only mean-spirited but really an attempt to misdirect, she said on Face The Nation. Because every single time we hear the incoming administration or Republicans in Congress talk about any vulnerable group in this country, we have to be clear that it is an attempt to distract from what they are actually doing. McBride emphasized throughout the interview that her focus would remain on serving the people of her district and that she would not let Republicans divert her attention from their attempts to roll back key benefits for the American people.Every single time we hear them say the word trans, look what theyre doing with their right hand. Look at what theyre doing to pick the pocket of American workers, to fleece seniors by privatizing Social Security and Medicare. Look what theyre doing undermining workers. Every bit of time and energy that is used to divert the attention of federal government to go after trans people is time and energy that is not focused on addressing the cost of living for our constituents. There is a real cost for the American worker every time they focus on this.She also recently spoke on Ezra Kleins podcast about a need for the trans movement to rethink its approach to changing peoples minds. Were not in this position because of the movement or the community, but clearly what weve been doing over the last several years has not been working to stave it off or continue the progress that we were making eight, nine, 10 years ago. We became absolutist not just on trans rights but across the progressive movement and we forgot that in a democracy we have to grapple with where the public authentically is and actually engage with it, she said.Politicians, she continued, have a duty of walking people to a place, rather than forcing them to catapult there.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.