if you want to watch the full 12 minutes of my interview with texas lieutenant governor dan patrick, our website. i thank him for the extended conversation. it was excellent to have that exchange. >>> joining me, former democratic texas state senator and gubernatorial candidate wendy davis who hails from ft. worth. i wanted to have you on because i'm curious how this is playing in texas right now. because i get the sense from talking to lieutenant governor patrick, from ted cruz's campaign trail rhetoric, that conservatives, a, believe what they're saying, first order. but also think they've got a winning political issue on their hands right now. is that the sense you get? >> i think it's much more the latter than the former, chris. they feel they've got a winning political issue on their hands. i found it so striking today to see dan patrick get up and grandstand in the news conference that he held, talking about those 30 pieces of silver and the intrusions of the federal government. we have some real problems here in texas. we have a dramatically underfunded school system here. we

dan patrick showed up here not to help or to listen or to learn anything.e showed up here in a political stunt. it was a drive-by shooting for look of a better description. he popped in, made his press conference, got a bunch of attention and then he left. he did so on an issue that had been decided in 2011. the policy they're talking about was adopted in 2011. i was there when it was adopted and people were involved in the process, parents were involved. this was two superintendents ago. the admin straighters have asked for guide ens on how to put forth this policy and act to it so the school district came up with guidelines to do so. the policy has been in place for five years. >> you're saying this policy was created in 2011. it has been in existence for five years. this issue begins to take on some very high political and culture resonance around the country and in the midst of that the lieutenant governor who has nothing to do with the independent school district of fort worth decides to come to fort worth to rail against this policy? >> that's the cha

. >> governor dan patrick used the word blackmail." he said it is going to divided country and has everything to do with keeping the federal government out of local issues. >> i think that does underscore the risk of electing a right wing radio host to a state wide elected office. >> reporter: keep in mind that came from josh earnest at the white house podium which is just 100 yards or so from the first white house all-gender bathroom to ever be installed. president obama has been the first president to hire a transgender outreach director as well. this goes way beyond bathrooms. it extends to a biologically male student wanting to use female locker rooms, even wanting to live in a female dorm when he or she goes off to college. for all the white house gui guidance, doesn't talk about a situation, say a 15-year-old boy goes into a girl's locker room, and when confronted he says, hey, i woke up this morning and decided i wanted to be a girl. something the white house press corps is certainly appreciating josh earnest on as we speak. >>

in fact the lieutenant governor of texas, dan patrick, reacted to the news a short time ago and whats to as blackmail from the president. nbc's ron allen is at the white house with more on this major news, of course. as people try to digest what this means, ron, and the indications that it has for school districts who choose not to adhere to this civil rights issue as the white house calls it. >> exactly. that's how president obama sees it. he has been a strong advocate for the rights of transgender people and here is another step in the process. you referenced north carolina, the legal battle there and the administration's efforts to change the law there. this deals with what essentially is billions and billions of dollars in federal aid for education and potentially other areas of federal aid that the administration is saying could be cut off if these states don't comply -- if the states don't comply and school districts don't comply by letting transgender people use bathrooms, locker rooms, according to their gender identity. it's become a huge issue in many communities. in illino

first let's turn to texas lieutenant governor dan patrick. thank you for joining us. your comments in response to the white house's remarks on you? >> first of all, when you will auction do is personally attack someone less than 24 hours after you have a new policy out you already know they are on the defensive. by the way for the record i spent eight years in the -- i oversee a budge of $40 billion. 6 million students, 1200 school districts and 300,000. i know mo more about education than the judge or the president does this. does nothing to to enhance education. it won't improve reading or math scores. won't help kids graduate. this will do nothing but be disruptive to our schools. teachers said we have tough enough time the boys in the locker room, when you start bringing in 14-year-old twice with 14-year-old girls to shower together. 7-year-old children comixing in the bathroom it's going to be chaos in our schools. the president -- by the way he threatened to take away funding. >> let's go back and forth rather than talking straight through. >> sure. >> this is w

like i said, only really flared up in recent weeks when dan patrick started to talking about in reactionat was going on in north carolina. i haven't seen any public opinion polling here in texas. but if you just look anecdotally at some school board meetings where the issue is being raised, for example as i mentioned earlier in the ft. worth independent school district, you're seeing a huge turn-out, for parents coming to speak against and for some of the these guidelines. so the public interest spiking and it's being helped by the attention being paid by people like dan patrick and our governor said he would be fighting on this issue. you're starting to see state lawmakers come along on this issue as well. ted cruz when he was a presidential candidate, was very vocal about it, especially after how he went after donald trump on it. so it's been something reverberating throughout texas republican politics for the past few weeks, but it's now coming to a head with the guidelines today from the president. >> patrick svitek, with the texas tribune, thanks for the time. >> thank you. >> and d

that was a political charge that was just made by dan patrick, julie, so let me go to you on that. >> listen, i think it's a sad charm to make. it may just be that barack obama believes this is the right thing to do. you know, i love hearing about states complaining the federal government is imposing its mandate on them. don't forget, this whole controversy began when charlotte, north carolina, passed a local ordnance allowing bathrooms to be used by transgender people of their choice, and then the state of north carolina said, no, we don't believe in it, we want to do something very different. so, again, this is an issue i think looking back 10, 20 years from now is going to be yet another defining civil rights issue again. if you're saying that transgender people cannot use the bathroom of their choice they identify with because you're worried about safety, what's to say that lesbians can't use the bathroom of their choice because they may assault fellow women or a gay man can't use the bathroom of his choice. martha: where does it end, alex, is the question that's raised here. >

lieutenant governor dan patrick. thank you so much. >> thank you. >> is he right? not going to survive? is there other precedent? that you'll find out in a moment. hmmmmmm..... [ "dreams" by beck ] hmmmmm... hmmmmm... the turbocharged dream machine. the volkswagen golf gti. part of the award-winning golf family. and my brother ray and i started searching for answers. (vo) when it's time to navigate in-home care, follow that bright star. because brightstar care earns the same accreditation as the best hospitals. and brightstar care means an rn will customize a plan that evolves with mom's changing needs. (woman) because dad made us promise we'd keep mom at home. (vo) call 844-4-brightstar for your free home care planning guide. e.t. phone home. when you find something you love, you can never get enough of it. change the way you experience tv with xfinity x1. >>> we are talking about the obama administration's new guidelines about allowing transgender students to choose the bathroom matching the identity. the gender that they identify with. julian weisz is here with

dan patrick told reporters that his state will refuse to comply. congress may get involved too. the task force on executive overreach says he opposes the guidance and says it might come up. in washington rich henson fox news. >> bay area congressman mike honda is in the debate. he has a transgender grand daughter and he's been outspoken on issues related to the community. he tweeted out this quote as the proud grandfather of a trance granddaughter and a former high school teacher it is bold and necessary. >>> jerry brown warned of economic uncertainty today as he issued his revised state budget. he warned now is not the time to spend. >> what you don't spend today you're minimizing the pay later. >> he's cautioning lawmakers there's no room for new spending using charts and graphs brown talked today about what future deficits might look like and why the capital gains tax is no longer predictable. >> we got to come out with a sizable reserve. we can't have any significant new spending and we got to get ready for the down turn. >> his announcement today has frustrated people like

texas lieutenant governor dan patrick is calling for the resignation of the ft. school superintendent for approving a bathroom policy that accommodates transgender students. >> this is social engineering and political correctness run amok. >> reporter: similar public school bathroom policies are up for debate this week in michigan, florida, and georgia. the departments of education and justice are releasing their directive reminding school districts that they are obligated to treat transgender students in the way that matches their gender identity. this applies to more than 16,000 school districts and 7,000 colleges, universities, and trade schools. >> hena daniels here in new york. thanks a lot. >>> it appears there has been progress toward a detente between donald trump and republican leaders. speaker paul ryan said trump was warm and genuine thursday. ryan was still not ready to endorse the presumptive republican nominee. we have this report. >> reporter: donald trump and paul ryan pledged to work together for the sake of their party. the two met at the republ

texas lieutenant governor dan patrick is calling for the resignation of the fort worth school superintendent. brooke proving a bathroom policy that accommodates transgender student. >> this is social engineering, political correctness run amuck. >> bathroom policies are up for debate this week in michigan, florida and georgia. hena daniels, cbs-3, "eyewitness news". >>> bidding in a on line auction for george zimmerman's gun is now back on and the current bid more than $50 million. the gun was used to kill trayvon martin. right now it is unclear if the bids are even legitimate. but the web soot united gun group hosting the auction after another site bailed out yesterday. the starting bid for the gun was $5,000. the zimmerman says some of the proceeds will be used to fight violence against law enforcement officers. zimmerman was acquitted in killing the unarmed teenager back in 2012. >> well, coming up: talk about major travel headache. find out why thousands of pieces of luggage were left behind at a busy airport. plus: >> i didn't expect any of this. it has been quite overwhelming, actually

state leaders, including texas lieutenant governor dan patrick, are flat out rejecting the obama administration's new guidelines. >> we will not yield to blackmail from the president of the united states. >> reporter: patrick is urging the state's school districts to ignore the policy completely. >> you cannot resist democracy. >> fort worth, the state's sixth largest school district, says it will enforce the new rules. >> taxpayers and parents should be outraged at this shocking violation and breech of the public trust. get back to education, repeal the policy. >> reporter: but the school's superintendent says the policy could prevent bullying. >> unfortunately not every child comes from a safe and supportive home. >> reporter: currently eight states plus the district of columbia have laws regarding gender and bathroom use. california and new jersey are the only two states that allow students to choose a restroom based on their gender identity. north carolina recently made headlines with a bill the critics say restriction transgender people's rights. back in forth worth, some believe matter shou

reporter: in his rebuke of the obama administration's new guidelines, texas lieutenant governor dan patrick urged the state's school districts to ignore them completely. >> why can't parents and the public have input on this policy? >> when we err on the side of fear, we amplify i had stare. >> reporter: the issue had already boiled over in fort worth, after the state's fifth largest school district said it would enforce a policy which includes letting transgender students choose the restroom they use, regardless of their gender at birth. >> taxpayers and parents should be outraged at this shocking violation and breech braech the public trust. get back to education. repeal the policy. >> reporter: the superintendent ken scribner said the policy was aimed at preventing bullying. >> unfortunately, not every child comes from a safe and supportive home. >> reporter: it's the latest battle that school districts across the country decide how to accommodate transgender students. eight states, plus the district of columbia, have laws regarding gender and bathroom use. only two, california and new j

according to lieutenant governor dan patrick, the state won't go along with the president's directive and instead is willing to forego funding for education. patrick says they will not, quote, yield to black mail. they have $10 million in education funding. a new hampshire man is facing two counts of murder after shooting two officers early on friday. authorities say a cop approached mcpherson who matched the description of a suspect wanted forearmed robbery. the 32-year-old opened fire on another officer and police release chilling audio of the officer. >> shots fired! shots fired! >> where are you? >> i've been shot! white male. long hair. trench coat. he went down toward the econo. >> >> mcpherson was arrested a few hours later. both officers are expected to survive. >>> and canada's prime minister is touring the devastation and fire-ravaged fort mcmurray after a helicopter arrived to witness the damage firsthand. justin true dough says he doesn't think most canadians fully understand the severity of what happened. it forced some 88,000 people from their homes and destroyed 2400 bu

. >> reporter: texas lieutenant governor dan patrick says a line has been crossed by the federal governmentfter the department of justice sent a letter on transgender bathroom use in public schools across the united states. >> i'm telling all the superintendents in texas right now you have about three weeks left to the school year. do not enact this policy. >> in the letter attorney general loretta lynch writes "there is no room in our schools for discrimination of any kind, including discrimination against transgender students on the basis of their sex." nd the guidelines, schools are obligated to treat students consistent with their gender identity. -- on the basis their sex." it sets the stage for a legal battle that's been in the making since march. house bill 2 requires people to use the public rest room related to the gender on their birth certificate, not how they identify. candice cox has been one of the most outspoken against the law. she's a transgender woman and has met with the north carolina governor. >> the fact that we are not talking about transgender people and who they are

texas governor dan patrick said today, his state is willing to forfeit $10 billion in federal education funding rather than comply. >>> decision 2016 coverage. democratic presidential kand hillary clinton broke federal records rules through her use of private e-mail server when secretary of state, according to an audit released from the state department. it said clinton disregarded guidelines and that she never sought approval to use personal, mobile devices for official business. the report also analyzed the weak communication practices of the last five secretaries of state but said clinton's failures were bigger during her tenure. >>> a romanian man who claim his broke into clinton's private e-mail server could spend up to seven years in prison. he pleaded guilty today. prosecutors said he broke into e-mail and social media accounts of 100 americans, including members of the bush family. >>> presumptive gop nominee donald trump isn't slowing down. a live look at rally for his campaign in anaheim, california. now, police warned protesters at this event violence would not be tolerated a

. >>> the republican lieutenant governor of texas dan patrick says it's the end of the public school system as we know it. good morning, everyone, i'm joy reid. welcome back to "a.m. joy. ""patrick was responded to an historic measure by the obama administration saying that schools must allow bathrooms with gender identity. >> it's not to discriminate against anybody. it's not to make anybody unsafe. it's actually to ensure that our schools are as inclusive and respectful and safe as they can possibly do. >> the move which lgbt groups say is ground breaking. attorney general loretta lynch gave a passionate speech on monday announcing the golf's lawsuit against north carolina. and telling transgender people that history is on their side. >> but no matter how isolated, no matter how afraid and no matter how alone you may feel today, know this, at the department of justice and indeed the entire obama administration want you to know that we see you. we stand with you. and we will do everything we can to protect you going forward. >> back with me now is leah wright rigor and joining me is

dan patrick says the order tramples on states rights. >> president obama, in the dark of the night, withoutonsulting congress, without consulting educators, parents decides to issue an executive order forcing transgender policies on schools and parent who is don't want it. >> patrick said texas would forfeit the $10 billion it receives rather than comply. we will not be blackmailed by the president's 30 pieces of silver. thank you for joining me. what is the mood in texas. trying to figure out how the country has gotten so hot on this issue from the right. >> you have to remember the context of this is the texas republican convention. you have within a five block ra radius they are rallying behind this. there were signs in the ladies room advocated for the state race on this particular issue. >> let me ask you, my question about it is, i don't want to be light hearted because it's a serious human rights issue. my question is this, if someone who is identifying as female, for example, dressed as female, made up as female and the manner or presentation comes off as female, why would they want

. >> reporter: in a friday morning press conference, dan patrick says the line has been crossed by thefederal government after the department of justice sent a letter on transgender bathroom use in public schools across the united states. >> i'm telling you all the supersben dents in texas, you have three weeks left in the school year. do not enact this policy. >> reporter: in the letter, attorney general lynch writes there's no room in schools for discrimination of any kind including discrimination against transgender students on basis of their sex. under the guidelines, public schools that receive federal money are obligated to treat students consistent with their gender identity, even if records indicate a different sex. access sex segregated facilities consistent with the identity and protect students' privacy related to their transgender status. this sets the stage for a legal battle in the making since march. house bill two in north carolina began the recent controversy requiring transpeople to use the public restroom related to the gender on the birth certificate, n not how they

. >> reporter: texas lieutenant governor dan patrick said he bone enforce the guidelines. >> this has everything to do with keeping the federal government out of local issues. >> reporter: but some parents say schools should have higher priorities. >> the focus of the school district should be on teaching the children, not on trying to separate, using gate, and make students feel that they are separate and unequal. >> reporter: texas stand to lose $10 billion. weijia jiang for cbs-3 "eyewitness news". >>> two women are smashing through the glass ceiling to protect and serve. today air force major junior roy robinson became first woman to head up northern command. norad is joint u.s. canadian operation that defend skies and seas of both nations. northern command was created after 9/11 to prevent future terror attacks. robinson joined the air force in 1982. here at home andrea testa was elected as new fire chief of the paoli fire company. officials say that she's first female fire chief in chester county history, chief testa has spent 25 years as a fire fighter and emergency medical tec

. >> reporter: at a friday morning press conference, dan patrick says a line has been crossed by theernment after the department of justice sent a letter on transgender bath room use in public schools across the united states. >> i'm telling all in texas, there's three weeks left of the school year. do not enact this policy. >> reporter: in the letter, attorney general writes there is no room in our schools for discrimination of any kind including discrimination of transgender students on the basis of their sex. under the guidelines, public schools that receive federal money are obligated to treat students consistent with their gender identity, even if the records indicate a different sex. access sex segregated facilities consistent with the gender identity and protect students' privacy related to their transgender status. the action sets the stage for a legal battle in the making since mar. . house bill 2 in north carolina began the recent controversy. the law requires transgender people to use the public restroom to the gender on the birth certificate, not how they identify. candic

. >>> texas lieutenant governor dan patrick says his state is willing to give up billions of dollarseducation funds in the transgender bathroom controversy. patrick says texas is not going to follow the policy that allows transgender students to use bathrooms to match their chosen identity. he says he will come up with roughly $10 billion in education funds. >> the president wants to pull funds because families don't want 14-year-old boys showering with 14-year-old girls and 8- year-old boys going to the bathroom with 8-year-old girls. he will be taking money from the poorest of the poor. >> a task force with the house judiciary committee plans to review the administration's guidance on the issue. >>> turning now to the race for the white house. ktvu spoke one on one with democratic presidential candidate bernie sanders and although he trails hillary clinton in the delegate count, he believes he can pull off an upset in june in california's primary. >> and in general what we do is put our resources in the strong grass root organizations, knocking on doors, making telephone calls, doi

dan patrick is fired up about this.st issue facing families and schools in america -- he says he will withhold funding if schools do not follow the policy. in texas, he can keep his 30 pieces of silver. we will not yield to blackmail from the president of the united states. ♪ when they thought they should westart saving for retirement.le then we asked some older people when they actually did start saving. this gap between when we should start saving and when we actually do is one of the reasons why too many of us aren't prepared for retirement. just start as early as you can. it's going to pay off in the future. if we all start saving a little more today, we'll all be better prepared tomorrow. prudential. bring your challenges. stuart: a fairly flat stock market at this hour. that could change around 2:00 o'clock this afternoon. at that point, we will receive some indication on whether the federal reserve will raise interest rates are not somewhere later this year. how about tesla. goldman sachs says by that stock. gold

deirdre: texas lieutenant governor dan patrick reacting to the obama administration's message.nsgender students use bathrooms of their choice or face the loss of federal funds. some conservatives are calling the move blackmail. last month target began a new policy of allowing transgender customers to use the bathroom they identify with. a concerned group organized a target bathroom protest. the group is called the american family association. its executive vice president is with me now. ed, thank you for the time. i know more than a million people have signed your online pledge to boycott target. are you surprised by the numbers of support that you have? >> well, thank you, deirdre. we're not surprised at the number. i would have to say we're pretty surprised and pretty pleased at the speed with which we reached that number. this is unprecedented for us here at afa, and i think, though, it hits at something that's beneath the surface. i think that there is a lot of frustration with political correctness, and this policy on the part of target and now with the obama administratio

. >> reporter: at a friday morning press conference, texas lieutenant governor dan patrick said a line has been crossed by the federal government after receiving a letter. >> i'm telling everyone across texas right now, you have about three weeks left to the school year. do not enact this policy. >> reporter: attorney general loretta lynch writes there is no room in our schools for discrimination of any kind, including discrimination of transgender students on the basis of their sex. under the guidelines public schools that receive federal money are obligated to treat students consistent with their gender identity, even if their records indicate a different sex, access sex segregated facilities consistent with a student's gender identity. the action sets the stage for a legal battle that's been in the making since march. house bill 2 began the legal controversy. the law requires people to use the rest room related to the gender on their birth certificate, now how they identify. candace cox is a transgender woman and has met with the north carolina governor. >> the fact that we are not

texas lieutenant governor dan patrick is calling for the resignation of the fort worth school superintendent approving a bathroom policy that accommodates transgender students. >> this is social engineering and political correctness run amok! >> reporter: similar public school bathroom policies are up for debate this week in michigan, florida and georgia. hena daniels, cbs news. >> today's letter comes in response to questions from school districts and colleges across the country on how to best serve transgender and nontransgender students. >>> donald trump is disavowing his former butler after he called for president obama to be killed. anthony senegal wrote on facebook that the u.s. military should have shot the president for being an enemy agent during his first term in office. the 84-year-old told cnn that he simply is fed up with the president. the secret service will conduct an investigation. >>> a missing world war i era cannon is back in its rightful place but the mystery of its disappearance is not yet solved. someone stole the one-time cannon from the veterans memorial hall at rich

but pushback from texas lieutenant governor dan patrick about the order and the threat that federal fundsoff to school districts that resist. george, the obama administration is basically acting on its own on this issue. there's been no consultation with congress and congress has done no legislative on the issue of transgender rights. on the other hand, their last month was a ruling by the fourth circuit court of appeals that held that title ix basically protects transgender rights on the issue of bathrooms and other matters of their choice. whaus your take on all this? >> well first of all they do this with a guidance letter which is supposed to be not mandatory. getting around the administrative procedures act that requires public hearings and public comment. three lessons here. the governor says they can keep their 30 pieces of silver. most at this late stage in the game, public schools, every institution in america so tied in with federal money, as soon as they take the pieces of silver, they become appendages of the federal government and subject to this kind of executive edict. seco

state leaders, including texas lieutenant governor dan patrick are flat out rejecting the obama administration'sew guidelines. >> we will not yield to black mail from the president of the united states. >> reporter: patrick is urging the state's school district toss ignore the policy completely. >> democracy is democracy. >> reporter: but fort worth the state's largest school district said it would enforce the new rules. >> parents should be outraged in this shocking violation in breach of the public trust. get back to education repeal the policy. >> reporter: the school's superintendent, says that the policy could prevent bullying. >> unfortunately not every child comes from a safe and supportive home. >> reporter: currently eight states, plus the district of columbia have laws regarding gender and bathroom use. california and new jersey are the only two states that allow students to choose a rest room based on their gender identity. north carolina recently made headlines with the bill critics a say restricts transgendered people rights. back in fort worth some believe the matter should be hand

. >> woodruff: in texas, lieutenant governor dan patrick urged his state's school superintendents toy the obama administration-- even if it means forfeiting billions in federal aid. >> he's either paying back the lesbian gay and transgender community that helped him defeat hillary clinton in 2008, or he believes in this policy. i don't know for what reason he's doing it, but it is the most damaging public policy he has put forth. >> woodruff: north carolina governor pat mccrory takes a similar stance. his state and the justice department are already suing each other over a new state law restricting public bathroom use to a person's birth gender. >> this is an issue which is really about privacy vs. equality and that balance. and people have an expectation of privacy, according to many of our citizens, not just in north carolina, but, again, this is now going to be a nationwide issue. when you go to a restroom or to a locker room or to a shower facility, there is an expectation of privacy, that the only other people in that room, in a very private moment, i might add, will be people o

critics like texas lieutenant governor dan patrick says the order tramps on states' rights. >> president obama, in the dark of the night, without consulting congress, without consulting educators, without consulting parents, decides to issue an executive order, forcing transgender policies on schools and on parents who clearly don't want it. >> well, patrick said, that's the lmpb that texas would forfeit the $10 billion it receives rather than comply, telling the associated press, quote, we will not be blackmailed by the president's 30 pieces of silver. well, joining me now is abbey livingston, washington bureau chief for the texas tribune. thank you for joining. what was the mood in texas about this? i'm trying to figure out how the country has gotten so hot on this issue from the right, especially. >> it's restive. you have to remember the context of this is the texas republican convention. you have within a five-block radius the most conservative of conservative texans all rallying behind this. so it is everywhere you turn around at this convention. even to the point that there were s

governor dan patrick. >> good to be back with you. neil: same here. you think tucker should be on the shortlist? >> ted cruz should be the replacement for antonin scalia. doris kerwin wrote a book on the team of rivals about lincoln and trump was said during the campaign that i can be as good as anyone except to be lincoln. well, he has a chance. he can take his friends like rudy giuliani. he would make great homeland security or defense or writ or he could fill of those spots. chris walker ought to come in. ted cruz said he was then going to nominate him to the supreme court, they would bring in the cruz people. he has a chance to build an all-star team. to be great for a country of great for our party. imagine rick peary, chris christie as attorney general. ted cruz i think would be a slam dunk. he's the young man. from the white house. the supreme court justice can reverse. he actually prefers that on his tombstone to never having in president of the united states. rarely does it go the other way. >> i have not talked to ted since last day but he d

reporter: in his rebuke of the obama administration's new guidelines, texas lieutenant governor dan patrick urged the state's school districts to ignore them completely. >> why can't parents and the public have input on this policy? will. >> when we err on the side of fear, we amplify hysteria. >> reporter: the issue had already boiled over in ft. worth after the state's fifth largest school district said it would enforce a policy which includes letting transgender finance choose the restroom they use, regardless of their gender at birth. >> taxpayers and parents should be outraged at the shocking violation and breach of the public trust. get back to education. repeal the policy. [ applause ] >> reporter: the superintendent, ken scribner, said the policy was aimed at preventing bullying. >> unfortunately, not every child comes from a safe and supportive home. >> reporter: the latest battle at school districts across the country, deciding how to accommodate transgender of columbia have laws regarding gender and bathroom use. only two, california and new jersey, specifically allow students to

governor dan patrick called the directive blackmail and said it's the biggest issues facing familiesa since prayer was taken out of schools. >> he says he is going to withhold funding if schools do not follow the policy. well, in texas, he can keep his 30 pieces of silver. we will not yield to blackmail from the president. >> several states, including texas, north carolina, and mississippi have already state they do not plan on following the directive and most folks agree that this directive will more than likely end up in the courts. back to y'all. >> that's one of the biggest criticisms this morning is that this is coming down as a mandate from washington whether it's right or wrong, one side or the other, i mean, shouldn't a discussion be had? in fact, michaelware a former house staff he organized the outreach in 2012. tweeted this yesterday astounding how quickly this is moving without a national conversation on the issue. what i'm trying to say is there was more outreach done changing the food pyramid. >> the food pyramid turned out to be completely wrong. of the white house has