California Democrats accused Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) of “caving to conservative talking points” after he suggested transgender participation in sports was “deeply unfair.”
The debacle sparked after Newsom told GOP activist Charlie Kirk during a podcast this week that he agreed it was unfair to allow biological men to compete against women.
The comments sparked swift backlash from progressives, with the California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus releasing a statement saying they were “profoundly sickened and frustrated” by Newsom’s “anti-transgender” stance.
“Sometimes Gavin Newsom goes for the Profile in Courage, sometimes not,” Assemblymember Chris Ward and state Sen. Caroline Menjivar, the caucus’s respective chairman and vice chairwoman, wrote.
“We woke up profoundly sickened and frustrated by these remarks. All students deserve the academic and health benefits of sports activity and until Donald Trump began obsessing about it, playing on a team consistent with one’s gender has not been a problem since the standard was passed in 2013,” the pair continued.
Other state Democrats, such as Assemblyman Alex Lee, chimed in.
“We don’t need our gov caving to conservative talking points that further hurt and scapegoat 1% of the population,” Lee said in a post to X.
The outrage followed Newsom’s response to Kirk after the conservative activist pressed the governor on whether he was against biological men participating in women’s sports.
“Well, I think it’s an issue of fairness. I completely agree with you on that,” Newsom replied, adding that he had a personal stake in the matter as the father of two daughters. “It’s deeply unfair. … I am not wrestling with the fairness issue. I totally agree with you.”
Newsom’s comments come despite the fact that top allies in his own administration have vehemently opposed President Donald Trump’s recent executive order prohibiting biological men from participating in women’s sports.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta, who was appointed by Newsom to be the Golden State’s top prosecutor in 2021, said last month he would not comply with Trump’s directive, which was issued in February. A 2013 California law extending protections to transgender athletes on the basis of gender identity, not biological sex, would override the White House’s executive order, Bonta pledged.
“State laws protecting trans athletes will remain,” he told the Guardian. “We’re ready,” Bonta continued, adding that he was “assessing the impact on the state and what actions could be taken to challenge it,” per the outlet.
The California Interscholastic Federation, the state’s governing body for high school sports, has also declared it will disregard Trump’s executive order. The Department of Education has since declared an investigation into the federation over the matter.
Two teenage girls are also leading a lawsuit against California’s law allowing transgender athletes to play in female sports, alleging that their school told them that “transgenders have more rights than cisgenders,” per Fox News Digital.
One of the teenage plaintiffs, Taylor Starling, allegedly lost her spot on the varsity cross-country team at Martin Luther King High School after the institution favored a transgender athlete.
“The Title IX coordinator for the Riverside Unified School District has stated ‘that as a Cisgender girl, they do not have the same rights as a transgender girl’ to multiple girls, not just our daughters, but multiple girls on campus,” Starling’s father told the outlet.
The lawsuit comes as Newsom has led California in becoming one of the most LGBTQ-friendly states in the country.
In July 2024, Newsom signed a law prohibiting schools from requiring teachers to tell parents if their child wishes to change their gender identification or pronouns. Last October, the governor signed a bill mandating health insurers provide IVF coverage to plan holders, including transgender-identifying women, as well as legislation prohibiting libraries from removing books over concerns about LGBTQ themes.
DEMOCRATS WEIGH CHANGE IN STRATEGY TO AVOID MIDTERM AND 2028 DEFEATS
Progressive activists have suggested Newsom’s more moderate LGBTQ stance issued this week has come as he considers a 2028 presidential run, a race in which he would likely need to move to the center in order to win the general election.
“Our message to Gov. Newsom and all leaders across the country is simple: The path to 2028 isn’t paved with the betrayal of vulnerable communities — it’s built on the courage to stand up for what’s right and do the hard work to actually help the American people,” Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson said in a statement on Thursday.
