DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Palus Politicus The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/...der-athletes-from-womens-sports-00198171


By Bianca Quilantan

01/14/2025 03:35 PM EST

Updated: 01/14/2025 04:03 PM EST

The House passed a measure to restrict transgender students from playing on women’s sports teams on a 218-206 vote Tuesday, with two Democrats joining Republicans to support the bill and one voting present.

The legislation — H.R. 28 — is a cornerstone of the GOP’s education agenda and would deliver on a priority for the incoming Trump administration. It bans transgender women from competing on teams consistent with their gender identity and amends Title IX, the federal education law that bars sex-based discrimination, to define sex as based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth.



Transgender students, however, would be able to practice or train with a program designated for women or girls.


President-elect Donald Trump honed in on transgender rights and inclusion as a key campaign issue and used it to attack Democratic candidates in ads and speeches. Republicans have since viewed the issue as a potential political albatross that could divide Democrats. The vote served as the first test for Democratic lawmakers who have been grappling with their party’s broad support of transgender rights following the 2024 elections.

Texas Democrats Henry Cuellar and Vicente Gonzalez joined Republicans in passing the measure. North Carolina Democrat Don Davis voted present.

Reps. Seth Moulton (Mass.), Tom Suozzi (N.Y.) and Gonzalez had recently vocalized their concerns over whether transgender students should be allowed to play on women’s sports and whether Democrats should change their messaging. Moulton and Suozzi voted against the measure.

On the House floor: During debate over the bill on Tuesday, GOP lawmakers argued the bill is crucial to upholding the promise of Title IX and protecting equal opportunity in athletics for women and girls. They focused on the physical disadvantages cisgender women could have against transgender athletes and potential injury risks they face.

“Kicking girls off sports teams to make way for biological males takes opportunities away from these girls,” House Education and Workforce Chair Tim Walberg said on the House floor. “This means fewer college scholarships and fewer opportunities for girls. It also makes them second class citizens in their own sports and puts their safety at risk. The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act offers a new promise to America’s women and girls.”



Several Democrats lambasted the bill as discriminatory and dangerous. They argued the bill is targeting a small number of people — less than 10 transgender athletes are competing in the NCAA — and that being part of a team and participating in sports is essential to students’ social and emotional development.

Democrats also brought a sign that labeled the measure “The GOP Child Predator Empowerment Act.” Lawmakers asserted the bill could make sports more dangerous for all students because it does not outline how schools should enforce the bill and could subject students to invasive sex testing.

“There is no way this so-called protection bill could be enforced without opening the door to harassment and privacy violations,” said Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (D-Ore.), who managed the Democratic debate time. “Will students have to take exams to prove they’re a girl? We’re already seeing examples of harassment and questioning of girls who may not conform to stereotypical feminine roles. Will they be subject to demands for medical tests, private information that’s intrusive, offensive and unacceptable?”

Walberg said the bill would not require any of that.

“I’m shocked at that description of this legislation and would ask where in the world that information has been found?” Walberg rebutted. “There is no requirement for inspections and there’s no necessary effort other than going to a person’s birth certificate.”

Rep. Sarah McBride (D-Del.), the first openly transgender member of Congress, also slammed the measure.

“I have two questions. How does this lower costs for workers? And how on earth is this going to be enforced?” McBride said.

Reaction: House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) took a victory lap after the bill’s passage at a press conference with lawmakers, including Reps. Greg Steube (R-Fla.) and Mary Miller (R-Ill.), and Riley Gaines, a former University of Kentucky swimmer and ambassador for the Independent Women’s Forum.

“Today, the House voted to uphold common sense again,” Johnson said. “We voted to require all schools receiving federal funds to uphold the original meaning of Title IX and keep biological men out of women’s sports. Last Congress, we voted on this legislation as well. We’ll note that not one single Democrat joined us. Today was an improvement. Bipartisan. We had two Democrats … There should have been many, many more.”


Advocacy groups supporting transgender students immediately criticized the vote as an attack and warned of a potential Senate vote on the measure as soon as next week.

“All students deserve to play sports alongside their peers,” said Fatima Goss Graves, president of the National Women’s Law Center. “For the students and community harmed by this bill, for everyone watching the cruel and dehumanizing campaign to diminish transgender young people, we are advocating for you and not giving up on protecting your humanity.”

What’s next: Senate Republicans have also been moving to advance a similar measure out of the chamber, but the bill could stall in the Republican-controlled Senate because it would require some Democratic support.

President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to address women’s athletics and has signaled he could issue an executive order to bar transgender women and girls from women’s sports after he takes office on Monday.

It's strange how long it took people to wrap their minds around this one.

This is fun.

Don't they have doctors who perform physicals before they can play sports?

SHHHHH you might offend somebody.

awesome, the first step toward lowering gas and grocery prices have been taken!

Plenty of people still haven't.

It's great to see them addressing the most critical part of their campaign promises.

The only people carrying on here are those that somehow think this was some pressing issue of importance on what the American people voted for. You know, the Murica! Freedumb! crowd.

Geez he’s not even in office yet!!

And already thinks he is. Hell, according to him he is nearing the end of his second term. Didn't you hear? According to him he won in 2020.

To the girls who lost position on a team, who missed out on a medal, who missed making an all American team or who was injured by a volleyball coming at her at a speed she had never seen before, it is a pretty pressing issue. I guess I will add the female boxers who hoped to win a medal in the Olympics until they were punched harder than they imagined possible. As well as all the families out there who want their girls to be safe and enjoy competing against other girls. Maybe the families like those of the four fourteen year old girls who were undressing in “their” locker room when an 18 year old male came in, undressed and took a shower.

Come to think of it there were a lot of folks who considered it a “pressing issue”.

You gotta admit... it's kinda funny how the Dems got their butts handed to them because they're out of touch (among other things) while he's on the campaign trail talking about how he's going to fix everyone's problems.... and then leading up to his first day all we're talking about is annexing the western hemisphere, Elon Musk ending remote work, and unfair high school sports rules.

In comparison to what? This was not some pressing issue Republicans concentrated on when they were on the campaign trail. Of all the issues they really need to be concentrated on this pails in comparison to many others.

I will say it's nice to see you standing up for a marginalized group of Americans. Because you are correct this was unfair to women in sports. I'm all for everyone having equal rights but when you claim it's your right to have an unfair advantage over the rights of others that's when it goes too far. This was the perfect example of that.

Sort of like how you don't want your children to read certain books so you think it's your right to insure that book isn't available to any other children. That takes away from the rights of other children and their parents to make that decision for themselves.

Now let's just see how far you go standing up for other marginalized groups in our society. My guess is you will be very selective about that moving forward.

Kinda??

I don't really think it's funny (odd) at all. He has a problem focusing long term and is easily distracted by whatever the FOX News topic of the day happens to be or what some extremist posts on X or Truth Social.

I give you "They're eating the pets" as an example...

There are like a dozen trans athletes in the sum total of all high schools, another dozen in sports outside of high school. This bill will likely fail in the Senate and you guys can spend more tax payer money fixing problems that don’t exist. Smfh, they can’t see how sad and stupid it is but they can parrot like hell.

Dems need to pass a law that says MAGA can’t send their kids to school with our kids. We don’t need that rubbing off… And I don’t want to share any space with a MAGAt. So, we’ll need better seating in restaurants and public places. Maybe some MAGAt and regular people signs by the water fountains… They think missing the holidays with dem family was bad…

Because I’m not serious? Or because meme man disagrees? How about posting an original thought if you want to engage me. I don’t do slapstick meme posts.

After getting men out of women's sports. They need to get them out of their restrooms, locker rooms, etc....

Should have called this the crock of BS act.

I don’t even know a trans kid, but I know how scared they are, and what discrimination and hatred does to people… sad af to see grown ass men and what passes for MAGA women target kids just trying to live their lives; ‘cAuSe JeSuS!’…

You either have two XXs or you don't. This isn't difficult.

The trans kids aren't the 'target'. The at-risk females are the 'target'. The reality is that biological males shouldn't compete against biological females. There are common sense reasons why there are two separate leagues.

And that's where I'm at on this. The great thing about America is our right to make choices. And if someone wishes to be trans that's a choice they are able to make in this country. As such I think they should have the rights of anyone else. Until they think their rights include infringing on the rights of others. Most choices we make in life have consequences. Some may be good and some may be bad.

Becoming trans should never give anyone an unfair or competitive advantage over others they compete against. That's infringing on women's rights by taking advantage of something you made the choice to do. The choice you made should not be used against you. But at the same time you shouldn't be able to use your choice to take advantage of others.

But when you put it like that, there's a lot less to get angry or butt hurt about. What's next, adults "identifying" as 12 year olds so they can play Little League baseball?

I'm going to take a motorcycle to the tour de france and say it identifies as a bicycle.

I don't know where I saw this (it might've been on here), but it was stated that there were more people that voted for this bill than the trans athletes it's aimed at.


If the rallying cry is protecting females (I didn't realize we went back to 1950's, but ok...) then I think we should aim a little higher on the list of actual risks to females in this country.

How many documented verified rapes of WOMEN have occurred by trans men in bathrooms or anywhere for that matter. The BS the right-wing was fed amounts to NADA, yet here we are PUNISHING ALL TRANS PEOPLE FOR EXISTING ‘cAuSe JeSuS!’… prove me wrong. I don’t know them, but I stand for their right to live and chase happiness just like the rest of us. This is just more bigotry in our legal system if you ask me.

Next years target might be anyone on on a government programs like disability and welfare. Or the country could turn on a political party, people over a certain age, etc… Slippery slope is a joke when you start passing this kind of crap to keep the OTHER away from loved ones. You know how to avoid trans people going to the bathroom? I mean don’t they have a right to crap? What’s next? A bathroom for every sexual preferrencer? I’m a hell of a lot more worried about my granddaughters being victimized by a right-wing incel or a rich mans pedo trafficking ring. Trans people aren’t hurting anyone, but we know the incels and pedos are all around, especailly since Trump hit the political scene. Hell, he tried to make one AG and another sexual deviant head of the military. And I haven’t seen a damn thing from the right on that. Crickets. NADA. ZIP. ZILCH. But the trannies are ruining womens sports and scaring women in bathrooms. Smfh, it’s idiocy.

So you think trans is a life choice? Just like gay right? Smh. I don’t care about the sports law, I get the muscular issue in competition. I DO MIND the terrorizing of trans kids, and all the hate toward trans people. I also mind when they say trans can’t use a bathroom… you either make gender neutral restrooms a thing for trans people or make them defecate in the hallways… you can’t hate somebody for using the restroom. In the 90s we saw trans kids killed for just being out. Now they have to disappear or live like second class citizens with less rights. Oh, I can’t wait for the karma to hit every one that made this a big deal in the ass. Nobody should be excluded from the right to live peacefully and pursue happiness… yet here we are. Good luck with that.

Why should women have to dress and undress next to men? Do women not have a right to privacy? Are the rights of a trans person more important than that of the women they infringe on in locker rooms? Are a trans person's rights more important than the women they compete against in sports? I know women who are very upset because they have to share locker room space, they feel violated. Is that right?

As an adult they have the right to be who they want to be, but their rights are not and should not be greater than women's rights to their own privacy.

Absolutely no one believes or wants that for trans children.


That is exactly why the law was created. To protect the people at-risk.

I think whether one goes through the transition is a choice. After which it's also a choice if you decide you have the right to compete against women in sports.


Which is the topic and on that topic it seems you agree with me. So what is this about?


Which I thought I had covered...


So ether you addressed the wrong poster or I have to ask again, what is this all about?

Not all women trip over trans people, just the ones running with the sheeple.

Yep. That the same law that DIDN’T MANAGE to jail the mango fascist “Insurrectionist and Thief” over the biggest attack on democracy since the civil war? Trans kids are doomed.

Sure this is all it’s about… you know better, it set’s a precedent and making Trans kids go away is not far behind. MAGA is a pack of hyenas looking for a bone to pick. Ffs, they want to deport anchor babies ending birthright citizenship. And you thought this was about the ten or so trans athletes? Gmafb.

So you do not care for women's right to privacy. Got it!

Didn’t say that, don’t put words in my mouth. Women using public bathrooms need locked doors, or gender neutral 3rd options, not discrimination and hate to solve a NON problem. Again, show me one criminally prosecuted case where a tranny transgressed against a woman in the bathroom? Most trannies are NOT MAGA and actually try to be kind. They know they are different, they’re just not ashamed of it.