GOP lawmakers blame Democrats for voting against the Women and Girls Sports Act, Riley Gaines

The US House of Representatives on Tuesday voted the first bill of the 119th Congress, the Women and Girls in Sports Protection Act.

All Republican representatives supported the bill, but only two Democrats, Reps. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, and Vicente Gonzalez, D-Texas, voted against it. All of the remaining 206 House Democrats are dissenting. Rep. Don Davis, D.N.C. They voted “now.”

After the bill’s passage, Republican congressmen and women’s rights activists condemned Democrats who opposed it at a press conference on Capitol Hill.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said it was a shame that only two Democrats voted to pass the bill.

“We had two Democrats with us, but it’s a shame, there should be many, many more. In fact, I would argue that every member of this body voted for sanity and to protect women. But for some reason, I guess for politics. They chose not to,” Johnson said.

“The American people sent a clear message in November that they want us to return to common sense, but some of our friends in the other party seem to have ignored that plea.”

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Former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines, a women’s athlete rights activist who is leading a lawsuit against the NCAA for allowing trans athletes to compete as women, also criticized the 206 Democrats who opposed the legislation.

Gaines took aim at Democrats who argued the new law would require young girls to be screened for sports eligibility.

“We hear about things like genital examinations, we hear about girls being asked to reveal what’s in their underwear, we hear about having to show the inside and outside of the body, inspections, Taliban-like enforcers, hiring hunters to get the upper hand on enforcement. And yet, something strange about hunters. Fear, but that’s what the Democrats do more,” Gaines said.

House Minority Leader Hakeem JeffriesDN.Y., on Tuesday, criticized the law in a post on Bluesky, making unsubstantiated claims that the law “opens the door to horrific child predators on girls and young women.”

Jeffries’ office did not adequately explain how the law would do this. Asked for comment by Fox News Digital, a spokesperson said: “The post speaks for itself.”

Gaines criticized the bill as a “waste of time.”

“I heard this bill was a waste of time, and let me tell you the message I got when I heard it was, I’m a waste of time. Girls across the country, like me, are a waste of time. Your daughters are a waste of time for all but two House Democrats.”

In the year Rep. Greg Stube, R-Fala., who reintroduced the bill in the House after a failed attempt to pass it in 2023, pointed to Democrats’ record of enabling and respecting trans inclusion in women’s sports.

“Democrats have tried for years to allow biological[males]to compete in our nation’s women’s collegiate activities,” Stube said.

“Of course it’s absolutely ridiculous that we passed a law that says only women can be in women’s sports!”

The Biden administration, along with other Democrats, has taken dramatic steps over the past four years to empower trans athletes in women’s and girls’ sports.

In the year On January 20, 2021, just hours after President Biden took office, he issued a Executive order In “Preventing and Combating Discrimination Based on Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation.”

This order included the section “Children must be able to learn without having to worry about being denied access to restrooms, locker rooms, or school sports.”

How the transition in sports changed the 2024 election and stirred the national culture

Biden introduced a sweeping bill in April clarifying that Title IX’s ban on “sex” discrimination in schools covers discrimination based on gender identity, sexual orientation and “pregnancy or related conditions.” The administration stressed that the rule does not address athletic eligibility. However, many experts provided evidence In June, he told Fox News that Digital would eventually put more biological men in women’s sports.

Democrats have introduced another federal bill that would allow more transgender inclusion in women’s sports. These include Law of equalityIn the year It saw amendments introduced in 2019 that would “require public schools to allow biologically male athletes who identify as transgender on women’s sports teams.”

In the year In March 2023, Democrats proposed a transgender bill of rights. A decision “Recognizing that it is the federal government’s duty to draft and implement a transgender rights bill.” The decision Specifically, federal law requires biological males to participate in sports on teams and programs consistent with their gender identity and (and) use school facilities that best align with their gender identity.

However, those positions appeared to backfire in November’s election, as Trump and Republicans blasted Democratic opponents with ads touting their support for trans inclusion.

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A National exit poll The Legislative Committee of Concerned Women for America (CW) found that 70% of moderate voters were against “Donald Trump’s transgender men and women playing women’s and women’s sports and transgender men and women using girls and women.” Baths” is important to them. And 6% said it is the most important issue, and 44% said it is “very important”.

“This was an opportunity to turn over a new leaf, to leave partisan politics behind and finally put people before Washington politics. But unfortunately, it remained a completely partisan vote, with only two Democrats willing to affirm and protect Title IX protections,” said Massey, CWA legislative strategist. Petty told Fox News Digital.

“This vote is not about some complicated policy issue, but a self-evident truth that civilization has recognized since its inception. As we’ve seen, women and girls face dire consequences when they’re left out. It’s about getting that moral clarity right. And that’s even harder. And it’s harder to get here in Washington.”

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