An Iowa woman who is the mother of trans child broke down in tears when confronting former Vice President Mike Pence over his anti-LGBTQ+policies during a News Nation town hall. Melissa McCollister, a social work professor at Grand View University, cried during an emotional exchange with the staunch conservative who’s running to become the 2024 Republican presidential nominee. After Pence told the audience he would protect kids from the radical gender ideology that’s taken hold in too many public schools, a visibly shaken McCollister pressed him on what he planned to do about the historically high levels of violence against transgender people across the nation. After wishing the former Vice President a Good Evening, McCollister took a pause to fight back her tears, before she voiced her views saying, “I am an LGBTQ member and I have trans individuals in my family.” She talked about recent anti-LGBTQ bills that have been signed into law all around the United States, including Iowa. She mentioned that so far in 2023, 15 transgender individuals and gender-nonconforming people have been murdered. Pence, who proceeded to dodge the question, said he was “deeply grieved to hear about those tragic circumstances” and truly moved by her emotions. #Queer Up Politics