President Joe Biden “strongly opposes” a Republican-led measure to enact a nationwide ban on biological men competing against women in sports, and would veto the bill if it came to his desk, the White House said Monday.
The White House said H.R. 734, entitled the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2023, “does not account for competitiveness or grade level” and is therefore “discriminatory.”
The House bill would amend Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 to define sex as “based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth.”
“Politicians should not dictate a one-size-fits-all requirement that forces coaches to remove kids from their teams. At a time when transgender youth already face a nationwide mental health crisis, with half of transgender youth in a recent survey saying they have seriously considered suicide, a national law that further stigmatizes these children is completely unnecessary, hurts families and students, and would only put students at greater risk. Discrimination has no place in our nation’s schools or on our playing fields,” a statement of administration policy reads.
The statement argues “schools, coaches, and athletic associations around the country are already working with families to develop participation rules that are fair and that take into account particular sports, grade levels, and levels of competition.”
“If the President were presented with H.R. 734, he would veto it,” the statement concludes.
Several states have already enacted legislation banning biological men from competing against women in youth sports, including Montana, Idaho, South Dakota, Iowa, Utah, Arizona, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, South Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia, Indiana and Mississippi, the New Jersey Monitor reported March 9.
WASHINGTON, DC – JUNE 23: Demonstrators cheer during the speaking program at the “Our Bodies, Our Sports” rally for the 50th anniversary of Title IX at Freedom Plaza on June 23, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
The Biden administration has staunchly opposed any legislation proposing restrictions on transgender youth, including the age of consent for sex change treatment.
The appropriate age for sex change treatment is “something for a child and their parents to decide. That’s not something that we believe should be decided by legislators,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.
Biden has also floated the possibility of a nation-wide transgender law.
“It’s not like … a kid wakes up one morning and says, ‘You know, I decided that I want to become a man or I want to become a woman … I mean, what are they thinking about here? They’re human beings, they love, they have feelings, they have inclinations,” Biden said about Florida’s policies on transgender youth. (RELATED: ‘Close To Sinful’: Biden Floats Possibility Of Nation-Wide Transgender Law)
“And the way we do it is we make sure we pass legislation like we passed on same-sex marriage. You mess with that, you’re breaking the law and you’re going to be held accountable,” Biden added.