Winsome Sears spars with Bill Maher over drag debate: ‘Bill, you gotta read more.’

Lieutenant Governor of Virginia, Winsome Sears (R-VA), recently had a heated discussion about drag performances and drag queen story hours for children with Bill Maher during an episode of Real Time with Bill Maher.

During the panel discussion with Sears and James Kirchick, a columnist for Tablet magazine, Maher questioned the notion that schools are teaching children there is no such thing as sex, and that promoting transgender issues has become a “trendy” social contagion.

However, Sears voiced concerns about the transgender issue being forced upon children in schools, particularly in the context of drag performances or live drag shows. “I’m a parent. I get to decide what happens in my child’s life,” she said. Sears also argued that parents should have full control over their children’s upbringing, and that drag performances or shows should not be forced upon children without their parents’ consent. “If I don’t want my child given lap dances at school by a drag queen, I don’t want it done. That’s happening,” she said.

When asked by Maher whether the state should be allowed to intervene in such matters, Sears responded by saying that, as a parent, she is responsible for her child, and not the government or anyone else.

During the course of the discussion, Sears and Maher also debated whether drag queen story hours or pole dancing by drag queens was a common occurrence in schools. To which Sears responded by asking Maher to “read more.” While Maher initially laughed off Sears’ claims, she insisted that these events do happen and that Maher needed to get out more.

There has been ongoing debate across several US states about whether adult drag performances should be allowed if minors are in attendance. In February, Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed a bill restricting adult-oriented performances with minors, and Governor Ron DeSantis has recently revoked liquor licenses for venues that have held drag queen shows with underage audiences.