Massachusetts Democratic Rep. Seth Moulton recently came under fire from members of his own party for speaking out against the left's stance on transgender athletes in women's sports.
Moulton expressed his feelings on the issue in an interview with The New York Times, citing his status as the father of two daughters.
“Democrats spend too much time trying not to offend anyone rather than being brutally honest about the challenges facing many Americans,” he said. spoke. “I have two little girls and I don't want them to get run over by a man, or a former male athlete, on the field, but as a Democrat I should be scared to say that.”
Moulton further reinforced his position in a statement released Friday night.
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“I strongly believe in the need for competitive women's sports to limit the participation of those who have an unfair physical advantage due to being born male,” she said in a statement. “I am also a strong supporter of civil rights for all Americans, including transgender rights.
“As always, I will fight for the rights and safety of all our citizens. These two ideas are not mutually exclusive and we may even disagree. There are a lot of people screaming from the far left,” I believe, who have failed the implicit Democratic purity test.
“We didn’t lose the 2024 election because of transgender people or transgender issues. We lost because we were ashamed of too many opinions held by too many voters. Neglecting it is one of the reasons, and we should stop doing it.Let's have a discussion now and decide on a new policy.''We have changed our party's strategy since the existing strategy failed. “We stand united in opposing Trump's policies that endanger American values.”
The comments prompted intense criticism of Moulton, much of it from his Democratic allies.
Massachusetts Rep. Manny Cruz suggested Moulton's stance was a “betrayal” in a post about X.
“Congressman Moulton, your pledge back then was to protect the LGBTQ community and stand up for their rights and compassion. Now, our congressman, on a political whim, is failing transgender youth in sports. You betrayed the words you signed last year by uniting the power of the People's Democratic Party and its leaders to win the presidential election and fight against bigotry, discrimination, bullying and harassment in all its forms. , we stand with Nagley and all of our community.”
Salem City Councilman Kyle Davis, also a Democrat, called for Moulton to resign.
“I'm not looking for an apology from the other person.” [Moulton]I am looking to resign,” Davis wrote in a post about X.
Massachusetts Sen. Jamie Eldridge also criticized Moulton for his posts about X and discouraged other Democrats in the state from following Moulton's lead.
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“Please do not abandon our values,” Eldridge wrote in a message to the Massachusetts Democrat.
Moulton is not the only Democrat to end support for women's sports and biological males in women's sports in recent election cycles. In the same New York Times article in which Moulton was quoted, New York Democratic U.S. Rep. Tom Suozzi also spoke out against it.
“Democrats have to stop pandering to the far left,” Suozzi said. “I don't want to discriminate against anyone, but I don't think biological boys should be allowed to play women's sports.
“Democrats aren't saying that, and they shouldn't be saying that.”
Democratic lawmakers who previously voted in favor of legislation allowing transgender participation in women's sports publicly denounced their support for the concept in the weeks leading up to Election Day. Those Democrats include Texas Rep. Colin Allred, Texas Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, and Alaska Rep. Mary Peltola.
Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, recently defended himself in relation to the issue, claiming he was never in favor of allowing biological males in women's sports.
“This is already banned in the state of Ohio,” Brown boasted in a campaign ad released in October.
But some within the party continue to advocate for transgender inclusion and the right for transgender athletes to compete with biological women.
Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez attacked the Green Party's vice presidential candidate, Butch Ware, after he spoke out against the Green Party's presidential bid. transgender athlete in women's sports.
“I don't think biological men should do that. play women's sports“I think it gives us an unfair competitive advantage,” Weir said in a video posted to X by lawyer and columnist Olayemi Orurin.
Ocasio-Cortez responded to the video, labeling the ticket “predatory.”
In April, the Biden-Harris administration issued a sweeping rule clarifying that Title IX's prohibition on “sex” discrimination in schools covers discrimination based on gender identity, sexual orientation, and “pregnancy or related conditions.” announced. And while the government has argued that the regulations do not address athletic eligibility, several experts say the regulations do not address athletic eligibility. evidence presented She told FOX News Digital in June that she expected more biological males to be included in women's sports eventually.
Ocasio-Cortez argued that the reforms do not go far enough to favor transgender people, especially transgender athletes who want to compete in women's sports.
“There is absolutely no reason for the Biden administration to do something like this. It's indefensible and it's embarrassing. The administration can and should still walk away from this. This is shameful.” Ocasio wrote in response to reports that the change would authorize schools to do so. Transgender athletes in women's and women's sports.
Bills such as the Equality Act and the Transgender Bill of Rights have been proposed and co-sponsored by Democrats, which would help enable transgender participation in women's sports at the national level.
Students hold flags to protest Katy ISD's new transgender policy outside the school district's educational support complex on August 30, 2023 in Katy, Texas. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)
President-elect Trump has proposed a federal ban on transgender participation in women's and girls' sports.
In a survey conducted in June, Conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago Respondents asked for opinions on whether transgender athletes of both genders should be allowed to participate in sports leagues that correspond to their desired gender identity rather than their biological sex.
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65% said it should never or rarely be allowed. When asked specifically about adult transgender female athletes competing on women's sports teams, 69% disagreed.
of united nations published a study that found nearly 900 biological women failed to win medals in sports because they lost to transgender athletes.
A study titled “”Violence against women and girls in sport'' said that, according to information obtained up to March 30, more than 600 athletes failed to win medals in more than 400 events in 29 sports, for a total of more than 890 medals.
“The replacement of women's sports categories with mixed gender categories has resulted in an increasing number of female athletes losing out on medal-winning opportunities when competing against men,” the report said.
