During a hearing on the immigration policies of so-called “sanctuary” states, Texas Rep. Brandon Gill and Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker engaged in heated confrontations on multiple issues.
Amid that line of questioning by Gill, Pritzker repeatedly called the hearing a “political circus,” and tried to steer the conversation back toward immigration and toward Gill’s votes in support of President Donald Trump’s agenda.
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WATCH HEREOne part of the back-and-forth caught attention on social media when Gill cited a tweet by Pritzker, published in 2017, while Pritzker was running for governor in Illinois.
In the tweet, Pritzker had suggested using bathrooms as a form of “protest” against Trump’s decisions to rescind protections for trans children in the U.S.
“As a protest against Trump’s rescinding protections for trans kids, everyone should use the other gender’s bathroom today,” the tweet read.
Pritzker later clarified that he was “not being literal” in the post.
Gill repeatedly asked Pritzker whether he thought that “biological men” should use women’s bathrooms during the hearing.
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Gill: “Do you think biological men should be able to use women’s restrooms?”
Pritzker: “I’m not sure what this has to do with immigration.”
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SIGN UP Gill: “It’s a yes or no question.”
Pritzker: “I’m not sure why this conversation is happening.”
During the continued sparring between the two men, Pritzker repeatedly tried to interject on matters of Gill’s votes in Congress on cutting Medicaid funding, which Democrats have argued would cost millions of Americans their healthcare coverage, and on ending SNAP benefits for many Americans.
He also continued to ask why the topic had come up during a hearing on immigration policy.
“So you’re admitting that this is just a political circus,” Pritzker said at one point. “If we’re going to politicize this, let’s talk about what you’re doing to people in this country by virtue of your votes.”
Gill’s office tweeted a video of the exchange, and said “should men use women’s bathrooms? JB Pritzker apparently thinks so.”
During his allotted time, Gill ran through a list of tweets sent by the governor pertaining to a variety of issues and pressed him on funding provided by state agencies to multiple organizations, including the Muslim Civic Coalition.
Gill was elected to Congress in 2024 and is the youngest Republican in the chamber. He has gained notoriety on numerous fronts, including his call for the deportation of Rep. Ilhan Omar to Somalia after she told residents in her district they were “not obligated” to answer questions from Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
"And frankly, America would be a much better place if she were to be sent back to Somalia," he said in a fundraising email published by Axios.
