Aaron Rodgers, the former Green Bay Packers and New York Jets star quarterback, spoke out against men competing against women on Wednesday, blasting the transgender movement as &#8220;anti-woman.&#8221;
Rodgers, known for speaking his mind on controversial topics, addressed the issue of men in women&#8217;s sports with podcast host Joe Rogan. During the episode of the &#8220;Joe Rogan Experience&#8221; posted on Wednesday, Rogan ripped into leagues that allow men who identify as women to take achievements away from women.
&#8220;What is it, like 700 women were robbed of gold medals across various sports — might have been more than that — because these biological men pretended to be women and identified as women and dominated in women&#8217;s sports,&#8221; Rogan said. &#8220;They have a giant advantage. Stop pretending they don&#8217;t.&#8221;
&#8220;Yeah, the trans women movement is actually anti-woman,&#8221; Rodgers said, clarifying that he made the comment in reference to sports.
&#8220;You&#8217;re not seeing trans men dominating anything,&#8221; Rodgers added, speaking of women who identify as men and compete against males. &#8220;It&#8217;s because there&#8217;s a biological difference.&#8221;
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Joe Rogan Experience #2325 - Aaron Rodgers" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Xj_dO-7Ct_4?start=6289&#038;feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
The 41-year-old quarterback has been criticized for questioning vaccines and was forced to miss an NFL game during the 2021 season due to league protocols regarding players who had not received the COVID shot. Rodgers was released by the Jets in March after two seasons with the team — one of which he missed due to an Achilles injury. He is still a free agent.
According to a U.N. report last year from the Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, female athletes lost out on nearly <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trans-identifying-males-are-cleaning-up-in-female-sports-this-un-report-quantifies-the-damage" target="_blank" rel="noopener">900 medals</a> after they had to compete against boys and men.
<a href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=memorial&amp;utm_content=editorialmemorialday" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Memorial Day Sale – Get 40% Off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships</a>
“The replacement of the female sports category with a mixed-sex category has resulted in an increasing number of female athletes losing opportunities, including medals, when competing against males,” the report stated. It added that men being included in the female category makes women and girls more vulnerable to serious injuries &#8220;as documented in disciplines such as in volleyball, basketball, and soccer.&#8221;
In recent years, more female athletes have begun to speak out against being forced to compete against men. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/i-was-injured-by-a-trans-athlete-state-legislatures-need-to-do-more-to-protect-womens-sports" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Payton McNabb</a>, a former high school volleyball player, has become one of the most outspoken advocates for protecting women&#8217;s sports after she was severely injured three years ago when a trans-identifying male opponent spiked a volleyball at her face. In March, McNabb attended President Donald Trump&#8217;s joint session to Congress as one of his guests.
Trump has pushed to protect women&#8217;s sports, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/surrounded-by-young-female-athletes-donald-trump-bans-men-from-womens-sports" target="_blank" rel="noopener">signing</a> an executive order in February banning men from competing against women. Under the order, schools and universities risk losing federal funding if they continue to force women to compete against men.
“It shall also be the policy of the United States to oppose male competitive participation in women’s sports more broadly, as a matter of safety, fairness, dignity, and truth,&#8221; Trump said.

Aaron Rodgers

‘A Biological Difference’: Star NFL QB Speaks Out Against Men In Women’s Sports

Celebrities

Joe Rogan

Politics

Transgender

Transgender Athletes

Women's sports

A California high school girl track and field athlete didn’t let the fact that a boy had stolen her championship deter her, and waited until the boy stepped off the podium to step up herself, stand up on the podium, and claim her rightful place as the winner.
Reese Hogan, 16, from Crean Lutheran High School, finished second place in the triple jump behind AB Hernandez of Jurupa Valley, a boy who claims to be a girl, at the CIF Southern Section Finals on Saturday. Hernandez jumped 41 feet, four inches, more than four feet farther than Hogan’s 37 feet, 2 inches. To make the difference clearer, third-place finisher Sofia Jara’s 36 feet, five inches was only 9 inches behind Hogan, and fourth-place finisher Kezia Gavlak jumped 35 feet, 11 inches, only six inches behind Jara. “Hernandez currently holds the state&#8217;s top marks in long jump (20-1.5) and triple jump (41-4) in girls track and field,” Sports Illustrated <a href="https://www.si.com/high-school/california/transgender-athlete-wins-cif-track-and-field-titles-in-girls-high-school-events-01jvmqrckp7b">noted</a>.
After Hernandez stepped off the podium, Hogan seized the moment, walked onto the first-place spot, smiled, and proudly posed for a picture.
“When the boy got off the podium, she assumed her rightful spot as champion. The crowd erupts with applause. THIS is the way. Congrats to Reese Hogan, the REAL champ!!!” women’s sports advocate Riley Gaines cheered.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
When the boy got off the podium, she assumed her rightful spot as champion. The crowd erupts with applause.
THIS is the way.
Congrats to Reese Hogan, the REAL champ!!! <a href="https://t.co/KiEm2yV2YY">https://t.co/KiEm2yV2YY</a> <a href="https://t.co/hqGdikES29">pic.twitter.com/hqGdikES29</a>
— Riley Gaines (@Riley_Gaines_) <a href="https://twitter.com/Riley_Gaines_/status/1924193952590160100?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 18, 2025</a></blockquote>
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On May 10, at the CIF Southern Section Division 3 Prelims at Yorba Linda High School, Hogan joined other girl athletes who donned t-shirts that said, “Protect Girls Sports.” Officials at the track meet reportedly made the girls change their shirts.
The day before, JSerra Catholic High School, Orange Lutheran High School, and Crean Lutheran High School wrote a letter to the CIF in which they stated:
<blockquote>For young women, CIF&#8217;s Gender Identity Policy means lost opportunities and an unlevel playing field. The consequences of this Policy will be felt this weekend as CIF&#8217;s state semi-final competitions for track and field events take place. Star female athletes, some of whom attend our schools, will soon compete in multiple track and field events against a male athlete who self- identifies as a female. If their respective regular-season performances are any indication, the male student will trounce his female competitors, depriving them of opportunities for advancement in tournaments, state championships, performance records, and potentially even college scholarships. Some of our female athletes have indicated they will not compete in their events to protest the injustice of this situation. This result makes it clear that the CIF Gender Identity Policy deprives women of the equal opportunities required by Title IX. Worse still, in some sports, the CIF Gender Identity Policy jeopardizes the physical safety of female student athletes.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Here is their letter to CIF. <a href="https://t.co/AfDpisJk6x">pic.twitter.com/AfDpisJk6x</a>
— Julie Hamill (@hamill_law) <a href="https://twitter.com/hamill_law/status/1920999049236267298?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 10, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Athlets on Podium

After Boy Beats Her In Triple Jump, High School Track Athlete Takes ‘Her Rightful Spot As Champion’

California

Girls

High School

High school sports

Social Issues

transgender athlete

Women Sports

The battle over women&#8217;s sports came to a head for women&#8217;s fencing on Wednesday in a heated congressional hearing where female fencer Stephanie Turner took questions alongside USA Fencing Chairman Damien Lehfeldt, who doubled down on allowing trans-identifying men.
Lehfeldt was subpoenaed to <a href="https://oversight.house.gov/hearing/unfair-play-keeping-men-out-of-womens-sports/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">appear</a> before the House Oversight Committee’s DOGE subcommittee for the hearing titled, &#8220;Unfair Play: Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports.&#8221;
Turner was disqualified from a Maryland tournament in March for taking a knee and refusing to compete against a trans-identifying male opponent. She ultimately stepped away from fencing altogether.
&#8220;It took me nearly three years to get up the courage to come out publicly,&#8221; Turner told lawmakers at the hearing. &#8220;That knee I took in protest was a cry for help and an act of desperation.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
“That knee I took in protest was a cry for help and an act of desperation.”
USA Fencing athlete Stephanie Turner testified before Congress about the painful decision to protest being forced to compete against a male opponent. <a href="https://t.co/yVrD2XSB0Q">pic.twitter.com/yVrD2XSB0Q</a>
&mdash; ICONS (@icons_women) <a href="https://twitter.com/icons_women/status/1920193484700692625?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 7, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Turner also explained how biological sex impacts performance in fencing, reminding lawmakers that it is a &#8220;combat sport.&#8221;
&#8220;There are elements of speed, power, reaction time, distance control, footwork and blade work — all attributes affected by sex development,&#8221; she <a href="https://oversight.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Turner-Written-Testimony.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> in her opening statement. &#8220;It’s unbelievably demeaning to female fencers to put down the differences between men and women and any woman’s loss to a man as a &#8216;skill issue&#8217; or that a woman simply needs to work harder.&#8221;
Ahead of the hearing, Lehfeldt appeared to throw up a middle finger on social media, captioning the post &#8220;Game time,&#8221; but later clarified that he cropped his other finger out of the photo. The uncropped photo <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/sports/usa-fencing-clarifies-chairmans-photo-which-caused-frenzy-before-hearing">shared</a> with Fox News showed Lehfeldt holding up two fingers.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
🚨 OUTRAGEOUS: <a href="https://twitter.com/USAFencing?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@USAFencing</a> Chair Damien Lehfeldt appears to give the middle finger this morning ahead of a Congressional hearing on the mistreatment of female fencers like Stephanie Turner—who took a knee to protest facing a male opponent and has since left the sport.
Unclear if… <a href="https://t.co/n4ELk2T4ue">pic.twitter.com/n4ELk2T4ue</a>
&mdash; ICONS (@icons_women) <a href="https://twitter.com/icons_women/status/1920144020506095987?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 7, 2025</a></blockquote>
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During the hearing, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) asked Lehfeldt whether he believes forcing women to change in front of a man is &#8220;abusive.&#8221;
Lehfeldt struggled to offer an answer.
&#8220;Congresswoman, I&#8217;m not sure I follow the question,&#8221; he responded.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
🚨 <a href="https://twitter.com/RepMTG?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RepMTG</a>: “Do you think forcing a woman to change in a locker room in front of a male is abusive?”
The silence from Damien Lehfeldt is LOUD… 
Absolutely reprehensible! <a href="https://t.co/hRpFnlnsDx">pic.twitter.com/hRpFnlnsDx</a>
&mdash; Independent Women&#39;s Forum (@IWF) <a href="https://twitter.com/IWF/status/1920191675353145463?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 7, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) challenged Lehfeldt to apologize to Turner to her face.
&#8220;Will you face Miss Stephanie Turner today? Will you look her in the eyes? Will you apologize to her for the way that she was treated by USA Fencing, standing up for women and girls, women&#8217;s rights, standing her ground as a woman who only wanted to fence with other women?&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
🤺👀 Rep. Mace asked Damien Lehfeldt, board chair of USA Fencing, to look Stephanie Turner in the eyes and apologize for how his organization treated her by forcing her to compete with men. HE REFUSED.<a href="https://twitter.com/RepNancyMace?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RepNancyMace</a>: “Real men protect women, you are not one.”
Watch the clip 👇🏻 <a href="https://t.co/Iw8h1Lul5T">pic.twitter.com/Iw8h1Lul5T</a>
&mdash; Oversight Committee (@GOPoversight) <a href="https://twitter.com/GOPoversight/status/1920275466734231770?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 8, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;Why aren&#8217;t you protecting women?&#8221; asked Rep Eli Crane (R-AZ).
&#8220;Sir, from a fencing standpoint, it&#8217;s one of the safest sports in the Olympic movement. I know that you think that swords present some kind of danger,&#8221; Lehfeldt responded.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Americans don&#39;t want MEN in WOMEN&#39;s sports. 
Why are Democrats so weird and out of touch? <a href="https://t.co/ztuqyJvgQS">pic.twitter.com/ztuqyJvgQS</a>
&mdash; Rep. Eli Crane (@RepEliCrane) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepEliCrane/status/1920536098918281513?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 8, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Rep. Brandon Gill (R-TX) asked Lehfeldt about his response to a mother who said she would move her daughters to a new sport over trans-identifying men in women&#8217;s fencing.
Lehfeldt posted his response to the woman on social media, calling her email &#8220;whiny,&#8221; and going on a bizarre rant to the woman, named Dorothy, in which he referenced “The Wizard of Oz” and told her the only wizard who could help her is “of the grand wizard variety.”
&#8220;I want to be crystal clear. That was an inappropriate message,&#8221; Lehfeldt said during the hearing. &#8220;I regret it, sir. I deleted it shortly after posting it, and I certainly don&#8217;t feel that way anymore.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Damien Lehfeldt, Chairman of <a href="https://twitter.com/USAFencing?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@USAFencing</a>, has a long, ugly record of smearing parents who dare to oppose men in their daughters’ sports.
He brought lame excuses. I brought receipts. <a href="https://t.co/QMU8XjB68z">pic.twitter.com/QMU8XjB68z</a>
&mdash; Congressman Brandon Gill (@RepBrandonGill) <a href="https://twitter.com/RepBrandonGill/status/1920230019164459185?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 7, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Lehfeld also doubled down in a response to a social media follower who asked him, “Are you okay with cis females being at a disadvantage?” Lehfeldt responded simply, “Yeah.”
After the hearing, Turner said she wanted to see some USA Fencing leaders resign.
&#8220;I&#8217;m going to be pushing for people to resign, to be honest. I&#8217;d like to see some people resign for the comments that they&#8217;ve made, especially publicly, ones that are harassing and meant to humiliate concerned women, mothers and daughters,&#8221; Turner <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/sports/usa-fencing-transgender-controversy-escalates-doge-hearing-social-media-regrets-calls-firings" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>.
Last month, USA Fencing said it might have to change its policy to bar trans-identifying males from women’s fencing.
“In the event that USA Fencing is guided to change its current stance in accordance with oversight bodies or federal legislation, the new policy states athletes competing in USA Fencing-sanctioned tournaments must compete according to their biological sex,” the organization <a href="https://www.usafencing.org/news/2025/april/18/usa-fencing-board-prepares-for-potential-changes-from-governing-bodies-on-transgender-and-non-binary-athlete-eligibility-policy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> in a statement.
“The policy will be implemented only if and when one or more governing bodies require these updates,” USA Fencing added.

PhotoFunia-1746809499-2

WATCH: Female Fencer And Trans-Supporting USA Fencing Head Face Off At Heated DOGE Hearing

Female Fencer And Trans-Supporting USA Fencing Head Face Off At Heated DOGE Hearing

Congress

Gender

gender ideology

Sports

NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley harshly condemned supporters of men playing in women’s sports, calling them “stupid.”
Barkley made his comments speaking with Dan Dakich on Outkick’s “Don’t @ Me.” Dakich asked about rumors that Nike had funded a so-called &#8220;gender-affirming care&#8221; study.
“Did you see this? I don’t know if you saw this,” Dakich said. “Nike’s been really good to me; Nike would take me on trips, I’d make some money, but they’re helping fund a gender-affirming care study on young boys with the goal is impairing (sic) boys to be able to come down, to participate against women. Have you seen this thing?”
“I have not, but I’m gonna make this very simple for you, Dan. Men should not play sports against women,” Barkley answered. “I’m not gonna get into all the bulls*** that’s going on out here in the world today.”
“You know, it’s interesting; I always sit back and look at stuff. And let me tell you something: I love gay people; I love transgender people. I’m against any form of discrimination, period. &#8230; I love my gay friends; I love my transgender friends. But, I’m not gonna get into all this stuff that’s going around, men should not play sports against women. If anybody thinks that, I think they’re stupid. I support the gay community 100%. I support the transgender community 100%. But I do not, under any circumstances … think that men should play sports against women. If anybody has a problem with that, they’re gonna have to get over it because I’m not gonna change. I just think it’s wrong, period.”
“I’m never gonna think it’s all right for men to play sports against women. I don’t even think that’s controversial,” he continued. “I don’t wanna hear you try to explain it to me. No, no, no, I don’t wanna hear it. I’m not gonna argue with you. Men shouldn’t play sports against women. I’m done. Don’t try to tell me this, or this, or this, period.”
The study supposedly funded by Nike was referred to in a recent New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/20/magazine/trans-athletes-women-college-sports.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">article</a> that mentioned Joanna Harper, a man who identifies as a transgender woman who is also a PhD researcher at Loughborough University in England. The Times stated:
<blockquote>
Harper is currently helping to lead an ambitious study of trans adolescents that measures their results on a 10-step fitness test before they start hormone therapy and then, after they have begun to medically transition, every six months for five years. But, she told me when we talked in February, “the current climate makes the study somewhat uncertain.” I assumed she was referring to the Trump administration’s cuts to National Institutes of Health research grants, but she said money was not a problem: The study is being funded by Nike.
</blockquote>
“I don’t even think anybody knows who they are as a young kid. So I think we have to be very careful because you don’t want to put kids in a disadvantageous situation, because, hey, when you get older, you can make your own decision,” Barkley said. “I think we have to be very careful screwing around with kids because they’re not fully developed as a person.”
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Charles Barkley

Charles Barkley Dunks On Supporters Of Men In Women’s Sports: ‘They’re Stupid’

U.S.

The world famous Boston Marathon has three race categories for participants based on gender — but because of lax gender identity standards, male runners have the opportunity to compete — and could win the top prizes — in all three categories: male, female, and non-binary.
Former Levi Strauss executive Jennifer Sey — who is an outspoken advocate for biological women and girls in sports and the founder of XX-XY Athletics — shared some details about the famous footrace in an op-ed published Sunday by the New York Post.
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A man is eligible to win every Boston Marathon category — men’s, women’s and non-binary, too. No space is protected for women. <a href="https://t.co/7rNQfJTVzX">pic.twitter.com/7rNQfJTVzX</a>
&mdash; Jennifer Sey (@JenniferSey) <a href="https://twitter.com/JenniferSey/status/1913992937203184082?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 20, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Sey noted that the Boston Marathon opened a non-binary category for runners in 2023, but that trans-identifying male runner Riya Suising — born Robert Chien Hwa Young — was still allowed to enter the race in the female category because he claims that he is a woman. It will not be Suising&#8217;s first outing, either — the longtime runner &#8220;has competed in races in the female category more than 338 times since 2009, medaling for his age group more than 140 times.&#8221;
&#8220;It means a man could win every Boston Marathon category — men’s, women’s and non-binary, too. No space is protected for women,&#8221; Sey wrote. &#8220;On a day meant to honor courage and freedom, is this what breaking barriers really means?&#8221;
Because those entering the race as &#8220;non-binary&#8221; could be biologically either male or female, the qualifying time for that category is the same as the women&#8217;s qualifying time — which is slower than the men&#8217;s time, Sey wrote: &#8220;The official qualifying time for women is 16.6% slower than for men — a full 30 minutes — recognizing a fact we all know to be true: men are faster than women.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Registration for Boston 2024 is open!
Men! Failed to qualify under the men’s times? No matter! You could still get in with a time 30 mins slower than your fellow men by declaring yourself non-binary! 🎉
Women! No such luxury for you. 😔<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/trainharder?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#trainharder</a> <a href="https://t.co/qGa3nj2tZM">https://t.co/qGa3nj2tZM</a> <a href="https://t.co/eeGs48cDQL">pic.twitter.com/eeGs48cDQL</a>
&mdash; Mara Yamauchi (@mara_yamauchi) <a href="https://twitter.com/mara_yamauchi/status/1701255359392792620?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 11, 2023</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;The prestige of the Boston Marathon was ruined when they created a non-binary category allowing men to qualify by running a female qualifying time. Now they allow men to compete in the women’s category too. Skip Boston. There are plenty of beautiful courses to run,&#8221; Storm Robinson posted in response.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
The prestige of the Boston Marathon was ruined when they created a non-binary category allowing men to qualify by running a female qualifying time. Now they allow men to compete in the women’s category too.
Skip Boston. There are plenty of beautiful courses to run. <a href="https://t.co/bmPfdEQpGn">https://t.co/bmPfdEQpGn</a>
&mdash; Storm (@stormrobinson) <a href="https://twitter.com/stormrobinson/status/1914006231020372025?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 20, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;The men’s category in the Boston Marathon is open to Riya Suising. The non-binary category is, too,&#8221; Sey concluded, noting that it did not matter if Suising won — the fact that he was even allowed to compete in the women&#8217;s category meant that he took a spot in the competition that should have belonged to a women. &#8220;The women’s category must not be. Misogyny looks no better in a running bra. It’s still a man insisting on special treatment, getting priority over every woman’s fair shot.&#8221;

129th Boston Marathon

Boston Marathon Has 3 Gender Categories. Men Could Win All Of Them.

Boston Marathon

Women

Attorney General Pam Bondi announces a lawsuit against Maine for defying President Donald Trump’s transgender athlete ban. A new report exposes glaring bias in media coverage of two illegal immigrants. And, new studies have thrown into doubt everything we thought we knew about ADHD.
It’s Thursday, April 17, and this is the news you need to know to start your day. If you’d rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
&nbsp;
<iframe style="width: 100%; max-width: 660px; overflow: hidden; border-radius: 10px;" src="https://embed.podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/doj-sues-maine-adhd-study-revelations-4-17-25/id1576594336?i=1000703850045" height="175" frameborder="0" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-storage-access-by-user-activation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation"></iframe>
&nbsp;
<h1>Trump DOJ Sues Maine</h1>
<div id="attachment_908933" style="width: 845px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-908933" class="size-large wp-image-908933" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Janet-Mills-Stank-Face-835x576.jpg" alt="" width="835" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Janet-Mills-Stank-Face-835x576.jpg 835w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Janet-Mills-Stank-Face-300x207.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Janet-Mills-Stank-Face-768x530.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Janet-Mills-Stank-Face-1536x1060.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Janet-Mills-Stank-Face-2048x1413.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 835px) 100vw, 835px" />(Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)</div>
Topline: After a months-long standoff, the Department of Justice has filed a civil lawsuit against Maine’s Department of Education over its transgender sports policies.
The suit says that Maine is “openly and defiantly flouting federal anti-discrimination law” by allowing males to compete in girls&#8217; sports. It says girls are being displaced from podiums, losing opportunities for advancement to regional and national competitions, and missing out on critical visibility for college scholarships and recognition.
In a press conference, Attorney General Pam Bondi said that Maine officials, notably Democratic Governor Janet Mills, forced their hand.  “We don’t want to be suing people, we want them to comply with the law, and that’s what we’re doing. We have given [every] opportunity over and over again. The Department of Education, HHS, they went and sat down with them in person, multiple meetings, and got nowhere.”
Minnesota and California have also apparently been put &#8220;on notice,&#8221; and other states are in talks with the federal government to resolve issues with Title IX enforcement.
Governor Mills issued a statement shortly after the suit was announced. She criticized the Trump administration for the “unprecedented campaign to pressure the State of Maine to ignore the Constitution and abandon the rule of law.” Mills also accused the administration of “politically motivated investigations” into Maine that had “predetermined” outcomes.
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<h1>Media Bias In Coverage Of Illegal Immigrants</h1>
<div id="attachment_908935" style="width: 788px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-908935" class="size-large wp-image-908935" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Media-Bias-Comedic-Graphic-778x576.jpg" alt="" width="778" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Media-Bias-Comedic-Graphic-778x576.jpg 778w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Media-Bias-Comedic-Graphic-300x222.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Media-Bias-Comedic-Graphic-768x569.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Media-Bias-Comedic-Graphic-1536x1138.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Media-Bias-Comedic-Graphic-2048x1517.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 778px) 100vw, 778px" />(Photo by designer491 via Getty Images)</div>
Topline:  A new report exposes glaring bias in the media coverage of two illegal immigrants in Maryland — one deported by the Trump administration and the other convicted of murdering a mother of five.
The study by the Media Research Center found major bias from legacy media outlets. The group found that while the outlets devoted ample coverage to an illegal immigrant deported from Maryland by the Trump administration, they completely ignored the conviction of an illegal immigrant for the brutal rape and murder of a Maryland mother of five.
The MRC report analyzed media bias in the coverage of two people: Maryland mother Rachel Morin, whose illegal immigrant rapist and murderer was just convicted on Monday, and Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an illegal immigrant with alleged ties to MS-13.
“We have added up about 65 minutes on ABC, CBS and NBC devoted to the guy they call “the Maryland man,’” Tim Graham, Executive Editor and Director of Media Analysis at the Media Research Center, told Morning Wire. &#8220;He&#8217;s an illegal alien who&#8217;s been living in Maryland for a decade, but he was deported. The Trump administration said this was an error, but they didn&#8217;t really wanna fix it. Compare that to the trial that just went on in Maryland with Rachel Morin, a mother of five who was murdered by an illegal alien… you have 65 minutes on the illegal alien mistakenly deported; you have zero seconds on the Rachel Morin trial.”
Graham argued that the main factor in network news coverage was whether a particular story helped or hurt President Trump. “They didn&#8217;t wanna talk about Laken Riley, Jocelyn Nungaray. [Rachel Morin]. When you have illegal immigrants rape a woman, or in Nungaray&#8217;s case, a 12-year-old girl, and then murder them, you can&#8217;t say, well, we only, you know, we don&#8217;t cover. You&#8217;re not gonna say that it&#8217;s a matter of who is the rapist and the murderer. That somehow turns it into a zero second story.”
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<h1> ADHD Study</h1>
<div id="attachment_908937" style="width: 880px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-908937" class="size-large wp-image-908937" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/ADHD-870x576.jpg" alt="" width="870" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/ADHD-870x576.jpg 870w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/ADHD-300x199.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/ADHD-768x509.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/ADHD-1536x1017.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/ADHD-2048x1356.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 870px) 100vw, 870px" />(Photo by Gam1983 via Getty Images)</div>
Topline: New research on ADHD is raising questions about how doctors are diagnosing and treating Americans, particularly children.
For years, scientists have believed that a biomarker – like a specific gene – could lead to a direct diagnosis of ADHD, or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. But research now suggests that’s false, and that ADHD is just a collection of symptoms that can be subjective and arbitrarily diagnosed. Children and adults can temporarily experience these symptoms – they can come and go – and they’re largely associated with your environment.
Additionally, children who were put on ADHD medications – which is some version of amphetamine – were found to only have short-term relief of symptoms. Compared to kids with no intervention at all, there was no difference long-term. Studies have shown that long-term use of such medications is <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/2811812">associated</a> with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, particularly hypertension and arterial disease. It can also stunt growth, which is particularly concerning since so many children are put on these medicines. Kids who took ADHD meds were<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/13/magazine/adhd-medication-treatment-research.html"> found to be shorter</a> than those never on the medications – and they never made up for the growth loss, according to longer-term data. 
Numbers from the CDC show that 7 million kids have been diagnosed with ADHD. Boys are more frequently diagnosed than girls, by almost a 2:1 ratio. In fact, 21% of all 14-year-old boys and 23% of 17-year-old boys have been given an ADHD diagnosis. Additionally, a growing number of adults are on these medications – the largest increase in first-time diagnosis is actually with people 30 to 44 years old.
“Fifteen percent of American youth are now on Adderall or some other ADHD medication,” HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. <a href="https://www.instagram.com/cpac/reel/DFbGwY3PtMm/?api=1%2F&amp;hl=bg">said</a> during his confirmation hearing. “Even higher percentages are on SSRIs and benzos. We are not just overmedicating our children, we are overmedicating our entire population.”
New <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/13/magazine/adhd-medication-treatment-research.html">research</a> shows that a busier schedule – or times of higher “environmental demand” – can actually alleviate symptoms of ADHD. The New York Times report noted that jobs or college courses that were demanding and interesting helped reduce ADHD symptoms. Other anecdotal evidence found that people who say they experienced ADHD symptoms felt relief when they found a way to channel it in a field they found interesting or excelled at, which tracks with the latest research. Further, addressing general over-reliance on medications for kids, RFK is looking at how our technological habits impact our overall health, as well as physical activity and nutrition.

Janet Mills and Donald Trump

Morning Brief: DOJ Sues Maine Over Trans Policies, Media Runs Cover For Illegals & The ADHD Scam

Immigration

Maine

Media

Media Bias

Morning Wire

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Title IX

By pushing its flagrant extremist agenda to the detriment of its predominantly rural, blue-collar residents, Maine’s Democrat majority reveals a deep-seated disrespect for Maine residents and an ideological misalignment with voter preferences, federal guidelines, and the timeless democratic principles that this country was built upon.
In the name of bolstering the state’s culture of equity, inclusion, and social justice, Maine Democrats have destroyed these virtues by forcing their progressive redefinition and implementation at the expense of Maine voters — a disturbing trend that is plaguing the country at large in a widespread cultural decline.
This is seen most glaringly in the transgender craze that’s possessed Maine’s elected leaders and educational bureaucracy. Countless parents, athletes, coaches, and state legislators have spoken out against Maine’s defiance of federal guidance prohibiting biological men from participating in women’s and girls’ sports. This is more than just anecdotal; <a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-trump-trans-athletes-womens-sports-maine__;!!PxibshUo2Yr_Ta5B!3KREuUGLNJperg_9upddiHG3dlNgmGJqVv4ICai4oQ5KUQtyca9uE7x1TOxzGCVTop8i_lBGOJbCbeIGytNsZtE$" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recent polling found</a> that a majority of Mainers (including the highly coveted independent bloc) believe high school sports should be separated by biological sex.
Maine Governor Janet Mills’ aggressive pushback against President Trump’s “<a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/02/keeping-men-out-of-womens-sports/__;!!PxibshUo2Yr_Ta5B!3KREuUGLNJperg_9upddiHG3dlNgmGJqVv4ICai4oQ5KUQtyca9uE7x1TOxzGCVTop8i_lBGOJbCbeIG2fwqsv0$">Keeping</a><a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/02/keeping-men-out-of-womens-sports/__;!!PxibshUo2Yr_Ta5B!3KREuUGLNJperg_9upddiHG3dlNgmGJqVv4ICai4oQ5KUQtyca9uE7x1TOxzGCVTop8i_lBGOJbCbeIG2fwqsv0$" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> Men Out Of Women’s Sports</a>” executive order wasn’t just a media stunt or political statement: it’s going to have a very real impact on Maine students and teachers if millions of dollars of much-needed federal funding is taken away from them as a result of the governor’s obstinate allegiance to this extremist agenda.
Yet the state’s Democrat majority persists in its radical agenda, insisting that they know better than the very constituents who elected them in the first place. It’s the reason why dozens of Maine school districts regularly withhold information from parents about their children’s gender transition process and the schools’ “gender plans” to help “affirm” students’ new identities. This condescension is both an insult to Maine residents and an astonishing abuse of parental rights — and underscores the contempt that the elected have for their electors.
Lest you think this deep disrespect for the electorate is unique to The Pine Tree State, think again. Across the country, the chattering class has been pushing a radical gender agenda against the will of families, and to the detriment of the country’s most vulnerable students. As part and parcel of this radical agenda, 12 states and the District of Columbia have declared themselves “transgender sanctuary states” to offer protections for youths seeking gender procedures while <a href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://defendinged.org/investigations/list-of-school-district-transgender-gender-nonconforming-student-policies/__;!!PxibshUo2Yr_Ta5B!3KREuUGLNJperg_9upddiHG3dlNgmGJqVv4ICai4oQ5KUQtyca9uE7x1TOxzGCVTop8i_lBGOJbCbeIGIoXlfBg$" target="_blank" rel="noopener">over 1,200 school districts across both red and blue states</a> have similar parental exclusion policies on the books, impacting more than 12 million children.
This isn’t just an assault on the parent-child relationship; it’s also a weaponization of tax dollars against the very people who pay them in the first place. Parents have a right to know what happens while their children are under the care of school personnel, and willfully concealing students’ information in the name of “inclusion” and “equality” is a clear violation of federal law.
Ultimately, Maine’s Democrat leaders are more focused on pushing their coercive agenda than fighting for what Mainers truly need and want. At best, their agenda is out-of-touch; at worst, it’s tyrannical.
Maine isn’t an ideological test lab where politicians can experiment with the effects of their extremist political philosophy — it’s a state with real people with tangible needs and priorities. It’s time for the state&#8217;s leaders to relinquish the activism and get back to the business that the people of Maine elected them to conduct.
At the end of the day, Mainers — and Americans as a whole — want common-sense policies that respect their values and protect their freedoms. Politicians should listen to voters and be responsive to their needs, rather than pushing an agenda far removed from the demands of their constituents. Let Maine be a warning to other blue states: should you choose to push your radical social justice agenda, be prepared to suffer the consequences.
* * *
Nicole Neily is the President &amp; Founder of Defending Education.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

MixCollage-26-Mar-2025-01-37-PM-9289

Maine’s Transgender Tug-Of-War Will Be Coming To A State Near You

Democrats

Education

Federal Government

Leftists

Opinion

President Trump

school district

Schools

A federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration from pausing federal taxpayer money to Maine.
U.S. District Court Judge John Woodcock Jr. on Friday granted a request for an emergency stay from the state, placing the Trump administration’s financial pressure on hold. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) had frozen funds to the state over its policies allowing for males to compete in female sports.
“During the pendency of this Temporary Restraining Order, the United States Department of Agriculture and Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins must immediately unfreeze and release to the state of Maine any federal funding that they have frozen or failed or refused to pay because of the state of Maine’s alleged failure to comply with the requirements of Title IX,” Woodcock <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.med.67828/gov.uscourts.med.67828.12.0.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrote</a>.
The White House has threatened and cut federal funding to Maine and accused the state of violating Title IX, which prohibits discrimination based on sex and outlines policies against sexual harassment at educational programs that accept federal funding.
The feud between Washington and Augusta has split Maine politicians. Republican Sen. Susan Collins posted a statement on social media on Friday urging the state to revise its policies around transgender-identifying players in female sports.
“The conflict between how the State of Maine and the Administration interpret Title IX needs to be resolved. I agree with the federal government’s position that biological males should not compete in girls and women’s athletics. Policies to the contrary violate the original intent behind Title IX,” Collins said.
“People who are transgender deserve to be treated with respect and dignity. But that does not change the fact that Title IX mandated equal access to athletic resources and facilities on the basis of sex – not on the basis of gender identity. Safe and fair athletic competition has been one of the keys to the success of Title IX,” she continued. “While I will continue to advocate strongly for federal funding for Maine, I disagree with the state’s position and instead support the original intent behind Title IX.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
The conflict between how the State of Maine and the Administration interpret Title IX needs to be resolved. I agree with the federal government’s position that biological males should not compete in girls and women’s athletics. Policies to the contrary violate the original…
— Sen. Susan Collins (@SenatorCollins) <a href="https://twitter.com/SenatorCollins/status/1910814398295531606?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 11, 2025</a></blockquote>
Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey <a href="https://www.maine.gov/ag/news/article.shtml?id=13170752" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> Woodcock’s order “confirms the Trump Administration did not follow the rule of law” in rescinding taxpayer funding to Maine.

Donald Trump

Federal Judge Blocks Trump From Freezing Funding To Maine Over Men In Women’s Sports

Courts

Trump Administration

USDA

On his show this week, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/john-oliver">John Oliver</a> decided to spend 45 minutes defending the idea that men — or “trans women,” as he calls them — should play in women&#8217;s sports. The trans issue has destroyed the Democratic Party and utterly demolished the Left’s cultural and political credibility. But they can’t let it go. Transgenderism is a religious conviction. They must remain committed to it. Which is disturbing and bizarre and uncomfortable to witness — and extremely fortunate for Republicans. It&#8217;s also, let’s be honest, really funny. In fact, John Oliver’s commitment to the transgenderism bit is, by far and away, his funniest routine. It is in fact his only funny routine. It&#8217;s the one time when he lives up to his billing as a comedian, if unintentionally.
So today we’re going to pick through Oliver’s arguments for “trans inclusion” in women&#8217;s sports. We’ll go through it piece by piece. And in the process we’ll see how utterly vapid and hollow and deceitful John Oliver’s whole schtick is. And how morally and intellectually bankrupt gender ideology is. As one of the most morally and intellectually bankrupt people in all of media, it’s no wonder that Oliver is so attracted to it.
As we’ll see, Oliver trots out all of the standard tropes in his desperate attempt to make gender ideology seem like it isn’t insane. He blabbers for 45 minutes, hitting each talking point one by one, punctuated every five or six minutes with something that, I can only guess, is supposed to approximate a joke. But in this whole long diatribe he never once addresses the core, fundamental argument of the other side. He never once acknowledges, much less makes any attempt to respond to, our actual point. Instead we get all of the tropes. Starting with <a href="https://youtu.be/flSS1tjoxf0?feature=shared&amp;t=59">this one</a>:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Trans Athletes: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/flSS1tjoxf0?start=60&#038;feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
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So he starts with the old “why are you so obsessed with this” routine, as expected. He then says that this “obsession” by Republicans is the reason why 6 in 10 adults don’t want men in women’s sports. The actual number is more like 8 in 10. But either way, he says that Republicans have waged a relentless propaganda campaign against trans people and that is why so many Americans now agree with them. Oliver has this, of course, completely backwards.
John, let me ask you this. What did the polls on trans athletes say 20 years ago? What about 30 years ago? If the poll numbers today are the result of a recent propaganda push by Republicans, that should be born out by comparing the poll results on the question today to the poll results 30 years ago, right? So what were the polls saying on this question 30 years ago? What do you think, John? Have you checked?
Well, don’t bother. I’ll help you. There were no polls on this question 20 years ago or 30 years ago or 40 years ago. Organized sports have existed in this country for like 170 years. And yet you’ll find no polls on the topic of “transwomen” in women&#8217;s sports, you’ll find no discussion about the subject at all, until very, very recently. Women’s sports in particular have existed in some form or another since the late 1800s. And yet, again, there was no discussion about whether men who think they&#8217;re women should be included in women&#8217;s sports.
<h3><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/mws-ep-1571-member-exclusive?row=2&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel&amp;rowHeadline=Latest+Episodes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WATCH: The Matt Walsh Show</a></h3>
If someone had conducted a poll in, say, 1950, and asked whether men who identify as women should be able to compete in women&#8217;s sports, what do you think the result would have been, John? Do you think you would have found at least 60% who responded in the negative? You’d find a lot more than 60%, wouldn&#8217;t you? It would be more like 100%, wouldn’t it? And that&#8217;s in spite of the fact that in the 1950s there was precisely no one pushing what you would call anti-trans propaganda. Republicans weren’t talking about the issue at all. And yet everyone agreed — everyone, literally everyone on Earth agreed — that if a thing is called “women’s,” it should only be for biological women.
So what does all of this tell us? Well, it tells us first of all that Republicans and conservatives aren’t the ones who started this conversation. We were all living our lives contently, without having any discussion about transgenderism, or whether men should be in women&#8217;s sports or bathrooms. Nobody was talking about it. Nobody was obsessing over it. Until the trans activists, to include yourself, came along and started screaming in our faces about it. You guys brought up this subject. You guys started marching and waving your flags and injecting your propaganda into schools and TV shows and films and everywhere else. Your side started giving castration drugs to children. Your side started listing your pronouns. None of this existed, this entire subject didn&#8217;t exist, until you guys brought it up and started obsessing over it.
Those polls you mentioned are not a result of our propaganda but of yours. The fact that there are 40% of Americans according to the poll you mentioned — or 20%, if you&#8217;re using an accurate poll — who actually think men should compete in women&#8217;s sports is a result of the relentless propaganda from your side. Again: if we’d asked this question 50 years ago, there would have been 100% of people on our side. But the question wasn&#8217;t asked. It wasn&#8217;t asked because when 100% of people are on one side, it’s not the kind of thing you even think to poll in the first place.
Moving on, Oliver next does the thing he always does, where he finds the weakest and most easily mocked version of the counter argument, and then frames the entire rest of his rant around that <a href="https://youtu.be/flSS1tjoxf0?feature=shared&amp;t=348">one example</a>. Watch:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Trans Athletes: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/flSS1tjoxf0?start=345&#038;feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Now, if you wanted to find an example of someone making the case against men in women&#8217;s sports, you have literally thousands of options to choose from. Thousands and thousands of people have made this case on camera. Female athletes, biologists, doctors, highly credentialed scientific experts in any number of related fields. But John sifted through all of that and went with Lance Armstrong, because Lance Armstrong is infamous for cheating in a sport. I’d say about 99.9999% of all the people who have made the case against men in women’s sports are not themselves famous for cheating in a sport, but Oliver went searching for the .0001% who had. And he uses the silly hypothetical offered by Armstrong — Rafael Nadal suddenly transitioning to a woman — as the framing mechanism for the rest of his argument. So Oliver has chosen the absolute weakest version of the opposing argument, offered by the weakest possible spokesman, and that will be the only argument he responds to the whole rest of the way.
Of course, even the weakest version of our argument, offered by the weakest spokesman, is still totally devastating to John’s side. Our weakest argument is made of steel compared to the flimsy, fantasyland nonsense that you hear from the pro-trans side. Armstrong is, in fact, correct. If all it takes for a man to be a woman is to identify as one, then if Nadal identified as one, he would now be a woman, and there&#8217;s nothing stopping him from dominating women’s tennis like Shaquille O’Neal in his prime playing basketball against a bunch of nine-year-olds. The point isn’t that Nadal is actually likely to make this transition. It&#8217;s that the policy that John Oliver advocates for, and the position he takes, would make that sort of absurdity possible. 
But Oliver is determined to miss the point, which he continues to do here:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Trans Athletes: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/flSS1tjoxf0?start=432&#038;feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
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Oh, they don’t? Well first of all, John, how do you know that? There are many examples of mediocre male athletes who, after a while of not succeeding against the men, suddenly discover their latent female identity. Lia Thomas is just one of many examples. How do you know that the fact that he could go from the middle of the pack to first by a mile isn’t what motivated him to make the switch? That trans “sports scientist” says that the social cost of transitioning is too high. He says that he personally lost his marriage and family when he transitioned. In other words, he willingly blew up his marriage and family for the sake of living out his fantasy of womanhood. What does that tell us? It tells us that he is extremely selfish. So the argument seems to be that trans identified people would never transition just to succeed in sports — because they&#8217;re too selfish for that. But I’m not sure that logic tracks.
And at any rate, none of this matters. None of this is even remotely related to the actual point. The reason for their &#8220;transition&#8221; is totally irrelevant. It does not matter. It makes no difference. Nothing that John has said to this point — nothing — even comes close to actually addressing our argument. And that trend will continue here:
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&#8220;It’s not the case that any man is stronger and more athletic than every woman,&#8221; says John Oliver. And in saying this, he has expertly knocked down and dismantled an argument that literally no one on Earth, at any point, anywhere, has made. Nobody claims that every man is stronger than every woman. John Oliver himself is proof of that. He would likely lose an arm wrestling match against my 11-year-old daughter. It’s true that scrawny, pathetically weak men do exist in this world. We’re looking at one of them.
But that’s not the point. The point about athletic advantages is that ON AVERAGE men are significantly — not slightly — significantly stronger and faster. This is because men and women are built differently. Women on average have 20% less muscle mass in their legs, smaller fast-twitch muscle fibers, smaller lungs, smaller hearts, shorter legs, much more estrogen and much less testosterone, and a lesser capacity to produce oxygen when they exert themselves. That’s why a team of high school boys could beat the women’s national team in soccer. It’s why the top ten male finishers in nearly every Olympic event always beat the top ten female finishers in the same event. In fact, the top 25 or 50 or 100 male finishers will beat the top 10 females.
It’s why you can find hundreds of examples just like this one. Andraya Yearwood and Terry Miller, both males, finished first and second in the 55-meter dash at the women’s state indoor track and field championships in Connecticut a few years ago. Miller also finished first in the 300-meter. Miller won the gold with a time of 38.9 seconds. Second place was a full second behind him – a near eternity in track time. But if Miller had raced against the boys in the same event, he <a href="https://twitter.com/MattWalshBlog/status/1101274590586851330">would have been</a> two seconds behind the guy who finished in 25th place. 
To reiterate: his “winning” time against the girls would have put him far outside the top 25 in the men’s field. The worst guy on the men’s track team can instantly become the best on the girl’s team. That’s the point. Or at least it&#8217;s the point about the athletic advantages. But even that point is not THE point. John Oliver still hasn’t addressed the actual point.
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Now, John goes on for a while about the dearth of studies dealing with “trans women” in female sports. He’s perplexed that there haven&#8217;t been more studies on the subject. But of course trans women are men, and there is ample scientific evidence and many, many studies demonstrating the physiological differences and athletic advantages enjoyed by men. He wants a study that specifically studies trans women, as if the fact that a man sees himself as a woman will in and of itself fundamentally impact his biology. But that is not the case. Which is why no one has bothered to study it. No credible scientist would ever say, “Hey, we know that men are faster and stronger than women. But what about men who think they&#8217;re women. Are they also faster and stronger?”
Their perception of themselves as women does not alter their biology. We don’t need a study to show us that, John. We just need to be not insane.
So what John is really talking about here are men who have undergone a “medical transition.” We’re being told that after “transition,” the physical advantages are diminished, supposedly. Does this mean that John Oliver is saying that only male athletes who’ve taken the drugs should be allowed to compete against women? No, he’s not saying that. At least he doesn&#8217;t appear to be saying that. His only real argument in favor of men in women&#8217;s sports is that, supposedly, men who&#8217;ve taken the transition drugs become weaker and slower. But he actually doesn&#8217;t follow that argument through to its conclusion and say that only men who’ve transitioned should compete. So again this whole thing is a red herring.
Also, why are men weaker and slower after transitioning? Why do they have less muscle mass? Well because the drugs are destroying their bodies. John Oliver is, here, proudly demonstrating that medical transition destroys the human body. It has a destructive effect on the physiology of the men who undergo these “treatments.” John seems to have little curiosity about that fact. He doesn’t linger on it or think about it very hard. Instead he just declares, “Look at that! Their bodies have been destroyed! Now they&#8217;re just like women!”
He doesn’t see any problem with equating a destroyed male body to a female body. He doesn’t see any problem with giving people supposed medical treatments that are designed to physically harm them. And he doesn’t even really think these treatments are relevant to the question of whether or not a trans woman is actually a woman or not.
That brings us to the argument that John has spent this whole diatribe studiously ignoring. The reason why our side actually opposes men in women’s sports is, as I explained during that hearing in California last week, very simply because men are not women. No matter how great or small their advantage. No matter if they’ve “transitioned” or not. No matter how they self-identify. Men are not women. The fundamental claim of the trans woman — that he is a woman — is false. It is objectively, scientifically, logically, empirically, in every way, and from every angle, false.
If there was a 30-year-old adult who wanted to play in a t-ball league against six-year-olds, we would all — even John Oliver — tell him no. But what if this 30-year-old was really un-athletic? Would that change our mind? What if he was very short, as short as a child? What if this 30-year-old would be only the tenth best t-ball player on the t-ball team? Would we let him play against the six-year-olds? No. Why? Because he&#8217;s not six-years-old.
Now what if the 30-year-old thought he was six.? What if he identified as six? What if he spent his whole life and had built his entire personality around the fantasy that he is six? Would we let him play in the six-year-old league in that case? No. In fact, we’d be even LESS accepting of him on the six-year-old team. Because not only is he still not actually six-years-old — he’s also deranged. The fact that he is deranged doesn’t make him six, and it doesn&#8217;t make us any more eager to let him play with six-year-olds. It has the exact opposite effect.
The same logic applies to women’s sports. Men are not women. Men who think they are women are still not women, and are, if anything, even less fit to be competing against them. This is the argument John Oliver won&#8217;t address. He will talk and talk and talk about the issue, but he won’t go anywhere near the actual point. The point that so-called trans women are not actually women. That’s our whole argument, John. I dare you to spend even five minutes addressing it. You’ve spent plenty of time on this topic. I think it&#8217;s time you actually get to the point.

Comic Relief Stand-Up for LA:  A Benefit For LA Wildfire Recovery

Debunking John Oliver’s Insane Defense Of Men In Women’s Sports

Comedy

John Oliver

Matt Walsh

Stocks slow their fall as President Donald Trump stands firm on his tariff and trade plan. The Trump administration pulls billions of dollars in federal funding from Ivy League colleges over their handling of anti-Semitism. And Female athletes across the country are opting to take a knee rather than compete against men allowed on the same playing field.
It’s Tuesday, April 8, and this is the news you need to know to start your day. If you’d rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
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<iframe style="width: 100%; max-width: 660px; overflow: hidden; border-radius: 10px;" src="https://embed.podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/trump-trade-war-defunding-the-ivy-league-4-8-25/id1576594336?i=1000702668343" height="175" frameborder="0" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-storage-access-by-user-activation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation"></iframe>
&nbsp;
<h2>Market Unease As Tariff Talks Continue</h2>
<div id="attachment_904461" style="width: 820px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-904461" class="size-large wp-image-904461" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Donnie-Does-Bidness-810x576.jpg" alt="" width="810" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Donnie-Does-Bidness-810x576.jpg 810w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Donnie-Does-Bidness-300x213.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Donnie-Does-Bidness-768x546.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Donnie-Does-Bidness-1536x1092.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Donnie-Does-Bidness-2048x1456.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 810px) 100vw, 810px" />(Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)</div>
Topline: President Trump is holding firm on his unprecedented tariff policy as markets swing and trade partners look to potentially make a deal.
The market rollercoaster continued Monday as uncertainty remains over how long Trump’s Liberation Day tariffs will stay in place and what they’ll mean for the cost of goods. Stocks in Hong Kong saw their worst day in nearly thirty years, plunging more than 13%. It was a similar story for markets across Europe and the rest of Asia. On Wall Street, we saw wild swings throughout the day, but ultimately, the DOW, S&amp;P, and NASDAQ each ended up within one percent of where they began when markets opened.
President Trump continued urging Americans to trust his plan. &#8220;It would be nice to serve a nice easy term, but we have an opportunity to change the fabric of our country. We have an opportunity to reset the table on trade&#8230; I don&#8217;t mind going through it because I see a beautiful picture at the end.&#8221;
Fake News: Around 10:10 yesterday morning, a popular X account posted that President Trump was considering a 90-day pause on all tariffs — that post understandably went viral. By 10:15, a CNBC guest repeated the claim, and markets soared, gaining trillions of dollars in value in minutes. The S&amp;P 500 spiked 7%, going from down 4% to up 3%. But moments later, the White House issued a statement calling the report “fake news,” and markets fell back down, erasing all of those gains.
“The market hates uncertainty,” Kenny Polcari, the senior market strategist for Slatestone Wealth, told Morning Wire when analyzing the aforementioned swing.  “It can take bad news. As long as there&#8217;s some certainty to it, the market can then adjust. But when the market remains so uncertain, the anxiety level rises, volatility rises, and it&#8217;s at that shoot first, ask questions later.”
China Doubles Down: Rather than expressing openness to a deal &#8211; as we’ve seen from dozens of other countries &#8211; China responded to Trump’s tariff with an additional 34% tariff of their own on American imports. Officials in Beijing accused President Trump of “bullying” their country, and in a remarkable twist, the Chinese Embassy in Washington posted old clips of then-President Ronald Reagan expressing his distaste for tariffs to contrast his position with the current administration’s. President Trump similarly expressed a willingness to go tit for tat, warning China on Monday: “If that tariff isn’t removed by tomorrow at 12 o’clock we’re putting a 50% tariff on above the tariffs that we put on.”
While Trump’s position has remained steady, there has been considerable backlash on Capitol Hill. A number of senators have crafted the Trade Review Act of 2025, a new bill that would require Congressional approval for future tariffs and give Congress the power to dissolve unilateral tariffs issued by the president. Seven Republicans have already joined a number of Democrats in endorsing the measure — including Chuck Grassley of Iowa, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, and Thom Tillis of North Carolina. They argue that Congress is the branch of government with power over foreign commerce and should be the leading voice on trade policy. The Trump administration said the bill “would severely constrain the president’s ability to use authorities long recognized by Congress and upheld by the courts to respond to national emergencies and foreign threats.” President Trump threatened to veto the legislation if it’s passed. 
&nbsp;
<h2>Trump Administration Suspends University Grants</h2>
<div id="attachment_904463" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-904463" class="size-large wp-image-904463" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Harvard-Campus-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Harvard-Campus-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Harvard-Campus-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Harvard-Campus-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Harvard-Campus-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Harvard-Campus-2048x1152.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />(Photo by janniswerner via Getty Images)</div>
Topline: The Trump administration is suspending hundreds of millions of dollars in government funding for elite colleges and universities over their handling of anti-Semitism and DEI programs. 
The administration revoked grants to various American universities, mostly those issued under the Department of Health and Human Services umbrella for research projects. The White House says schools are not eligible for this taxpayer money if they fail to protect Jewish students and uphold new civil rights standards, which includes doing away with race-based admissions.
“The President has made it incredibly clear that he expects that students who are going to universities can go to a safe campus without discrimination,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon told Fox News last week. “What we saw across Columbia and other universities was that the universities were not living up to that. I mean, when you see students barricaded in the library, people pounding on the glass, saying, &#8216;Death to USA, Death to Israel&#8217;…a lot of the Jewish interaction on campus has been driven underground, and that&#8217;s just not the way our education should be.”
Columbia University was the first school to have its <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-shuts-off-spigot-for-numerous-research-grants-at-princeton">funding suspended</a> in early March, to the tune of $400 million. The campus was an epicenter of unrest during anti-Israel protests last year. The University of Pennsylvania, Trump’s alma mater, is losing about $175 million in federal funding over a biological male swimmer who previously competed on the women&#8217;s team. The school still hasn’t changed its policy on transgender athletes. $210 million in research grants to Princeton University were halted last week over charges of anti-Semitism, and $510 million in funding to Brown University was cut for the same reason.
Harvard University currently has $9 billion in grants and contracts under review pending an investigation into its handling of anti-Semitism. Former Harvard President Larry Summers commented to the Wall Street Journal that if Harvard folds, every school will. But so far, Harvard has been threading the needle carefully. Harvard’s current president, Alan Garber, acknowledged the anti-Semitism problem on campus and warned that losing $9 billion would &#8220;halt life-saving research and imperil scientific innovation.&#8221; It’s still unclear if the school will comply with all of the new federal standards.
Christopher Eisgruber, president of Princeton, told <a href="https://x.com/business/status/1907766531745853812">Bloomberg News</a> that this funding “has been fundamental to the excellence of American research universities, and it has contributed tremendously to the prosperity, health and security of our country.”  On Sunday, Eisgruber told <a href="https://x.com/business/status/1907766531745853812">NPR</a> that the funding halt was “a threat to academic freedom” and the “greatest threat to American universities since the Red Scare.”
&nbsp;
<h2>New Title IX Task Force</h2>
<div id="attachment_904465" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-904465" class="size-large wp-image-904465" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Title-IX-Task-Force-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Title-IX-Task-Force-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Title-IX-Task-Force-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Title-IX-Task-Force-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Title-IX-Task-Force-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Title-IX-Task-Force-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Title-IX-Task-Force-1800x1200.jpg 1800w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Title-IX-Task-Force-1200x800.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />(Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)</div>
Topline: Despite Trump’s executive orders against biological males in women’s sports, many trans-identifying males are still being allowed to compete against women.
The Trump administration has announced a new “special investigations” team that will probe schools violating Title IX by permitting males to play on the girl&#8217;s team.  The Education and Justice Departments announced a joint task force to protect female athletes from “the pernicious effects of gender ideology in school programs and activities.” The Education Department receives a “staggering volume” of Title IX complaints. The task force will have investigators and attorneys “thoroughly&#8221; review potential violations, including males in women’s sports and males in women&#8217;s spaces such as bathrooms and locker rooms.
Simultaneously, there’s been a trend of female athletes taking a stand against competing against males, and several have made headlines in recent weeks. Professional disc golfer Abigail Wilson <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/most-likely-ended-my-career-disc-golfer-who-protested-trans-competitor-says-she-has-no-regrets">walked off the course</a> at a tournament in Nashville on Friday to protest the participation of a male player in the women’s division, stating, “Females must be protected in our division. This is unfair, I refuse to play.”
Stephanie Turner was disqualified from a fencing tournament last weekend at the University of Maryland after<a href="https://x.com/icons_women/status/1907487751664247154?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1907487751664247154%7Ctwgr%5E2cec98633dfd3b71e0297338e34237489f9fe9e7%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailywire.com%2Fnews%2Fvideo-female-fencer-booted-from-tournament-after-refusing-to-compete-against-male-opponent"> forfeiting</a> a match against Redmond Sullivan. Sullivan used to compete as a male, but after switching to the female division, he won first place at the Connecticut Division Junior Olympic Qualifiers. Turner told <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zsbod8p6SJQ">Fox and Friends</a>: “Women’s sports are designed to demonstrate female athletic excellence and that gets lost when there are men in the tournament.”
A UN <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/10/23/world-news/un-reveals-how-many-female-athletes-have-lost-medals-to-trans-opponents-in-explosive-report/">report</a> found last year that “over 600 female athletes in more than 400 competitions have lost more than 890 medals [to men] in 29 different sports.”
Last week, the Department of Agriculture <a href="https://www.usda.gov/about-usda/news/press-releases/2025/04/02/usda-freezes-funding-promises-further-action-if-maine-continues-violating-federal-law#:~:text=USDA%20Freezes%20Funding%2C%20Promises%20Further%20Action%20If%20Maine%20Continues%20Violating%20Federal%20Law,-Published%3A&amp;text=(WASHINGTON%2C%20D.C.%2C%20April%202,for%20certain%20Maine%20educational%20programs.">paused</a> federal funding to Maine’s athletic programs following Democratic Governor Janet Mills’ refusal to comply with President Trump’s executive order on Title IX. On Monday, Maine’s attorney general filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration challenging the funding cut. It&#8217;s the first such suit over a Title IX dispute and will likely not be the last.

Golden bull and bear on stock data chart background. Investing, stock exchange financial bearish and mullish market concept.

Morning Brief: Market Unease, Defunding The Ivy League & New Title IX Task Force

China

Communist China

Department of Education

higher education

Tariffs

Men and women are different. This biological reality was once universally understood. Now, however, radical activists are trying to bully women into believing that merely a public declaration of your gender makes you a woman. Thankfully, we are coming to a tipping point. More and more brave, strong, authentic women are rising to the bizarre challenge of our day.
Women like <a href="https://x.com/i/trending/1907525406108098676" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Stephanie Turner</a>. At a collegiate fencing competition last weekend, she removed her mask and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/video-female-fencer-booted-from-tournament-after-refusing-to-compete-against-male-opponent" target="_blank" rel="noopener">took a knee</a> before her bout, refusing to compete against a male who had competed on the men’s team just a year earlier. USA Fencing responded by immediately disqualifying and expelling Turner from the tournament. Turner’s decision to stand up and publicly shoulder this fight required immense strength. Strength that her male counterpart didn’t possess, or he’d still be training to succeed is his own division.
It’s the same kind of strength Maine Representative Laurel Libby showed when she <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/i-will-not-be-silenced-democrats-censure-maines-laurel-libby-for-calling-out-trans-sports-policy?row=0&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;author=Amanda+Prestigiacomo&amp;title=%E2%80%98I+Will+Not+Be+Silenced%E2%80%99%3A+Democrats+Censure+Maine%E2%80%99s+Laurel+Libby+For+Calling+Out+Trans+Sports+Policy&amp;category=News" target="_blank" rel="noopener">spoke out</a> against the injustice of a biological male student dominating girls’ pole vault at the Maine State Class B Championship. The student had previously placed fifth in the boys’ division just one year before. Like Turner, Libby’s refusal to go along with the gender activists’ takeover was met with punishment. When she tried to defend herself, the male Democratic Speaker of the House, Ryan Fecteau, cut her microphone and shut down the live feed. Libby stood before the dais with a stoic strength. Strength her male Democratic counterpart didn’t possess, or he’d be able to defend his position on the merits.
Oddly, the same people who silenced Laurel Libby, who disqualified Stephanie Turner, who took a medal from Riley Gaines, and who named MJ Rodriguez “woman of the year,” are the same individuals who scream about feminism. These are the same “feminists” who think my daughters should change their swimsuits beside men at the YMCA.
To the “feminists” who cannot define a woman, anyone can be a woman, so everyone is a woman. Those who don’t nod their head, put pronouns in the email signature, and quietly follow along are bullied like the women above.
Thankfully, Turner and Libby aren’t so easily intimidated. They add their names to a growing list of strong women undeterred by the powerful forces who seek to take their voices away. Each woman who stands up makes a difference, especially for the generation of girls behind them. Though these brave acts may seem small in isolation, together they cannot and will not be ignored.
Turner and Libby are two women at the forefront of a fight that should have never needed to be fought. It’s a sad reality that defending the very concept of womanhood has become a radical act, but it is that radical act by these women who are inspiring others to stand up unapologetically and demand girls’ spaces be returned to them. And parents, we must continue to do our part in our towns, schools, and local sports leagues.
Girls’ spaces should be sacred, and their rights should not be subject to ideological whims. We must ensure that the next generation of girls grow up knowing they deserve a world where they are protected and respected.
While this fight is far from over, these women have set the stage for the movement afoot to take hold. Parents across the country are stepping forward at school board meetings and standing up to the governing boards of local sports leagues. We must continue to harness this momentum to protect our daughters and reaffirm the biological reality that somehow slipped from the cultural collective sense.
* * *
Alleigh Marré is the Executive Director of the American Parents Coalition and a mother of four.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

MixCollage-04-Apr-2025-12-34-PM-9888

Why Protecting Girls’ Spaces Should Never Be Up For Debate

Why Protecting Girls' Spaces Should Never Be Up For Debate

Feminism

<a href="https://www.usafencing.org/damien-lehfeldt" target="_blank" rel="noopener">USA Fencing Chair Damien Lehfeldt</a> two years ago published a lengthy pro-transgender manifesto, which was flagged by a source to The Daily Wire following the athletic organization&#8217;s decision to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/video-female-fencer-booted-from-tournament-after-refusing-to-compete-against-male-opponent?row=0&amp;elementPosition=3&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;author=Amanda+Prestigiacomo&amp;title=VIDEO%3A+Female+Fencer+Booted+From+Tournament+After+Refusing+To+Compete+Against+Male+Opponent&amp;category=News" target="_blank" rel="noopener">disqualify a female fencer</a> from a tournament for refusing to compete against a transgender-identifying male opponent.
Lehfeldt, who calls himself &#8220;the fencing coach,&#8221; published a lengthy blog post on August 30, 2023, outlining why he wants male transgender-identifying athletes to compete against females.
<div id="attachment_902779" style="width: 834px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-902779" class="wp-image-902779 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.22-PM-824x576.png" alt="" width="824" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.22-PM-824x576.png 824w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.22-PM-300x210.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.22-PM-768x537.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.22-PM-1536x1073.png 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.22-PM-2048x1431.png 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 824px) 100vw, 824px" />Screenshot: TheFencingCoach.com</div>
The post claims that &#8220;transgender women are women&#8221; and that &#8220;no&#8221; athlete &#8220;transitions with the intention of gaining a physical advantage over their cisgender peers.&#8221;
Lehfeldt also explains that if his daughter has to one day fence against a male who claims to be female, he would hope his daughter &#8220;doesn’t care about the outcome and that both she and her opponent simply enjoyed the bout.&#8221;
At the outset of the blog, Lehfeldt outlined his &#8220;beliefs&#8221; about the issue:
<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Transgender women are women and gender is not sex.</li>
<li>Transgender fencers deserve the right to compete with the gender they identify with, and those of adult age should comply with the competition guidelines and regulations outlined by USA Fencing and the IOC—even if the science [of] those IOC guidelines might be imperfect.</li>
<li>A separate division denies them their truth to compete as their authentic selves and is antithetical to USA Fencing’s Diversity and Inclusion (D&amp;I) vision.</li>
<li>There is a possibility that transgender women have a physical advantage over their cisgender opponents after transitioning. There is also a possibility they do not. In Fencing, there is no data to support either viewpoint.</li>
<li>Giving athletes a sense of belonging and a will to live is more powerful than medals and competitive glory.</li>
</ul>
<div id="attachment_902781" style="width: 925px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-902781" class="wp-image-902781 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.31-PM-915x576.png" alt="" width="915" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.31-PM-915x576.png 915w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.31-PM-300x189.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.31-PM-768x484.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.31-PM-1536x967.png 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.21.31-PM.png 1734w" sizes="(max-width: 915px) 100vw, 915px" />Screenshot: TheFencingCoach.com</div>
Lehfeldt then discussed how someone he knew &#8220;transitioned&#8221; from male to female and became &#8220;her authentic self.&#8221;
&#8220;She wasn’t a boy afraid of his own shadow anymore, but a confident, strong young woman who suddenly was who she was always meant to be. She was her authentic self,&#8221; he wrote. &#8220;The moment he became Rhonda, the lie was gone and she was…happy.&#8221;
Citing a research article, Lehfeldt claimed that allowing males in girls&#8217; sports &#8220;can be lifesaving.&#8221;
&#8220;Despite these benefits, 22 state legislatures have banned transgender participation in sport and sought to bar these at-risk youths from the field of play,&#8221; he wrote, adding with emphasis, &#8220;And to me, such bans are just as insidious as bans of cisgender women.&#8221;
&#8220;I’ll be the first to admit that maybe ten years ago, I didn’t understand this topic,&#8221; the post continued. &#8220;I would have told you that gender was binary. I would have said: you’re born a man or a woman and your sex at birth is what you are. The science on the topic has evolved, and the science on the topic is still evolving.&#8221;
Lehfeldt admitted that male athletes &#8220;may&#8221; have a physical advantage over females, even post-&#8220;transition,&#8221; but dismissed concerns about fairness.
&#8220;The first principle of trans participation one must accept, is that no one transitions with the intention of gaining a physical advantage over their cisgender peers,&#8221; Lehfeldt wrote (emphasis his own).
<div id="attachment_902783" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-902783" class="wp-image-902783 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.40-PM-1024x536.png" alt="" width="1024" height="536" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.40-PM-1024x536.png 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.40-PM-300x157.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.40-PM-768x402.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.40-PM-1536x803.png 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.40-PM.png 1828w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Screenshot: TheFencingCoach.com</div>
&#8220;One day, my daughter may compete against a transgender woman,&#8221; he said. &#8220;She might win. She might lose. I hope I’ve done a good enough job articulating the depth of the issue, that she doesn’t care about the outcome and that both she and her opponent simply enjoyed the bout.&#8221;
&#8220;I hope she understands that the young lady she competed with might not be with us in this world if she was forced to live a lie in a gender she didn’t identify with,&#8221; Lehfeldt added. &#8220;And I hope, by the time my daughter is old enough to compete, this topic won’t be as faux-pas and divisive as it is in the present.&#8221;
<div id="attachment_902789" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-902789" class="wp-image-902789 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.50-PM-1024x340.png" alt="" width="1024" height="340" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.50-PM-1024x340.png 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.50-PM-300x100.png 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.50-PM-768x255.png 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.50-PM-1536x510.png 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Screenshot-2025-04-03-at-4.22.50-PM.png 1658w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Screenshot: TheFencingCoach.com</div>
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/video-female-fencer-booted-from-tournament-after-refusing-to-compete-against-male-opponent?row=0&amp;elementPosition=3&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;author=Amanda+Prestigiacomo&amp;title=VIDEO%3A+Female+Fencer+Booted+From+Tournament+After+Refusing+To+Compete+Against+Male+Opponent&amp;category=News" target="_blank" rel="noopener">VIDEO: Female Fencer Booted From Tournament After Refusing To Compete Against Male Opponent</a>

Damien Lehfeldt

USA Fencing Chair’s Pro-Trans Manifesto Surfaces After Woman DQed For Refusing To Fence Male

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