Daily Wire host Michael Knowles sat down with PBS Newshour on Thursday as
conservatives gathered in Washington, D.C., for the 2025 Conservative
Political Action Conference (CPAC).
During the interview on the taxpayer-funded network, host Amna Nawaz asked
Knowles questions on a range of issues before taking exception to some of his
comments on transgenderism. Nawaz brought up a remark Knowles made at CPAC in
2023 about "eradicating" the ideology of transgenderism.
The PBS Newshour host asked Knowles to explain his belief further, saying,
"I'll confess, I don't know what the difference is" between "eradicating"
transgender ideology and "eradicating" transgender people.
"If I say that I want to eradicate poverty, I'm not saying that I want to
eradicate all the poor people," Knowles replied. "Quite the opposite. I would
like to help the poor people by eradicating poverty."
"For the good of society and especially for the good of the poor people who
have fallen prey to this confusion, transgenderism must be eradicated from
public life entirely, the whole preposterous ideology at every level," he
added.
Knowles pointed out that "men can't really become women," arguing that it's
unhelpful to "lie" to people who are "confused about their sex."
Nawaz contended with Knowles over his statements about biological reality.
"This is a belief system that you hold. Transgenderism is something that has
been acknowledged by medical professionals," Nawaz said.
"And rejected by medical professionals," Knowles shot back.
"By a few. There's an entire body of scientific and medical knowledge that
back this up, and that's what gender-affirming care has been based on in
recent years," Nawaz said.
The PBS Newshour host then reverted to asking Knowles about his use of the
word "eradicate," saying, "Do you worry that puts a target on peoples'
backs?"
"Certainly not," Knowles responded. "In fact, the only targets that I've had
on my own back are when I question these kinds of ideologies that have been
so terrible for people. The only times I've ever been attacked in public --
in one case, someone is in federal prison for trying to blow me up at a
speech in Pittsburgh -- is because I dared to question the trans ideology."
"People are being introduced to this ideology at younger and younger ages,"
Knowles continued. "It can lead to horrific outcomes, especially for younger
people put on puberty blockers, which often cannot be reversed. It leads to
castration, bone problems, and early death. These are not the sort of things
that we should wish for people if we wish for their own good."
https://youtu.be/6tnuLCK-sR4-- Not a joke! Don't jump!
"Not The Sort Of Things We Should Wish For People": Knowles Debates PBS Host On Transgenderism