Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders is that conniving word that rhymes with “witch” and if you weren’t aware of that, here’s all the evidence you need to see what I mean. And fortunately, she and several others of her gay-hating Republican cronies were tripped up by a judge who does not suffer fools gladly. These emotionally stunted people suffered an embarrassing comeuppance when Pulaski County Circuit Judge Patricia James obliterated their ban on gender-neutral driver’s licenses.

The good judge leaned a sympathetic ear to a request from the American Civil Liberties Union to resume allowing state residents to once again have the option of marking an “X” in the gender field of their state IDs, in lieu of an “M” or an “F,” Queerty reports It’s a noncommittal gender marker option that has been available since 2010, that according to the State Department of Finance and Administration, fewer than 500 people were using it.

Huckabee Sanders and gang pulled this stunt beginning in March, scurrying to pass emergency legislation to ban that scary-looking X on all official state IDs, forcing that small number of 500 people or less to list the gender that matches the one on their birth certificates.

Now, Arkansas isn’t exactly rolling in wealth. It ranks as the fourth worst state in the U.S. when it comes to household living below the federal poverty level. It’s also the second worst state in the country in regards to safety, and it ranks dead as a doornail last in the country when it comes to health. But durn it, there’s all them LGBTQ+ people out there who need to be punished for some nonexistent reason, so let’s move heaven and hell to make sure it gets done.

Because that’s the Republican way.

“The judge’s decision invalidates the [Department of Finance and Administration’s] emergency rule, citing the lack of any documented justification or compliance with the procedural requirements of the Arkansas Administrative Procedures Act,” noted the ACLU of Arkansas in a statement. “The court agreed with the ACLU’s argument that the DFA failed to demonstrate any urgent threat to public health or safety that would justify the sudden policy change.”

And for ACLU of Arkansas’ Legal Director John Williams, this was good news.

“This decision reaffirms the importance of due process and the necessity for public input in policy changes that significantly impact people’s lives,” he said.

Others, like JaVon Hansen, one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, were similarly encouraged.

“This decision means so much to me and countless others who have been living in fear and uncertainty because of this unjust policy,” they said.

But there is a bit of bad news, however. This victory likely has a short shelf life. The injunction only blocks the emergency rule for up to 120 days. After that lawmakers can either allow the ban to lapse or opt to make it permanent. A public comment period is now underway before the issue heads back to lawmakers to be voted on again in July.

Huckabee Sanders has always tried to grind LGBTQ+ people under her well-fleshed heel, having done things like championing Arkansas’ very own “Don’t Say Gay” law. She’s also banned gender-affirming care for minors and banned teachers from honoring students’ state pronouns. And she’s limited drag performances, probably because most drag queens look better than she does.

Then, of course, Huckabee Sanders has entertained some expensive dalliances — like billing taxpayers for a $13,000 college football kickoff party and blowing $20,000 on a fancy podium that looks like it would fall apart when sneezed on. Then there’s those luxurious trips, including a so-called “overseas trade mission” in Europe that was also paid for by taxpayers and splurging on a VIP experience at the Super Bowl for her entire family. She claims she paid for that hornswoggle out of pocket despite the fact that her annual salary $158,739.

According to the Human Rights Campaign State Equality Index, Arkansas is ranked as “high priority to achieve basic equality,” which is the index’s lowest ranking.

“I think it’s a sign of where we are socially and culturally,” Cathryn Oakley, senior director for legal policy at the Human Rights Campaign, said earlier this year. “When people see those states, including Arkansas, in the bottom group I don’t think anybody is surprised.”

Huckabee Sanders will undoubtedly continue to drive the state into the ground as long as she remains governor. She’s more worried about what’s under people’s skirts than she is about safety, health, and poverty. This is sad. Ordinary Arkansans will suffer because of her continued focus on people’s attempts to be treated with fairness and equality. They are stuck with her until 2027 unless something unusual happens, but maybe then they’ll kick her to the curb where she belongs.