“The only thing I will say is if you vote yes on this bill and yes on these amendments,” Zephyr said, “I hope the next time there’s an invocation when you bow your heads in prayer, you see the blood on your hands.”

This indecorous slander irritated some Republicans — understandably so. Subsequently, during a pre-vote discussion on a bill designed to provide a “common definition for the word ‘sex’ when referring to a human” the following day, Zephyr sought to speak but was not recognized by the House speaker. The Associated Press picked up on this development and treated Americans to an update on the ordeal endured by this beleaguered lawmaker: “Transgender lawmaker silenced by Montana House speaker.”

All this sounds especially vindictive and capricious until you read local media’s account of how events in the Montana House actually transpired…