Senator Ruben Gallego is the latest Democrat to side with Republicans’ anti-trans athlete attacks ahead of a potential 2028 presidential campaign.
“As a parent of a daughter, I think it’s legitimate that parents are worried about the safety of their daughters, and I think it’s legitimate for us to be worried also about fair competition,” the Arizona politician said in an interview with The Dispatch published on Thursday. “And I think the parents of these trans children are also worried legitimately about the health and wellness of their kids.”
Gallego added that, in his view, “There are some sports that some of these trans children should not be playing.”
He went on to argue that it should be the job of “local institutions” like school boards or associations to identify sports where “there should be a separation” between cis and trans athletes. Despite arguing that trans kids shouldn’t be allowed to play on teams that align with their gender identity, Gallego suggested that adults should be compassionate to said kids in the process.
“Hey, listen, we love you,” he said of the message he thinks should be sent to young trans athletes. “We want you to be part of our community, but this is just the one place you can’t play, and let’s find other activities for you to be involved.”
Gallego isn’t the first Democrat to come out against trans inclusion in sports following Democrats’ failure to win the presidency, House, or Senate in 2024. Shortly after last year’s election, Massachusetts Rep. Seth Moulton told The New York Times that his Democratic colleagues “spend way too much time trying not to offend anyone.”
“I have two little girls, I don’t want them getting run over on a playing field by a male or formerly male athlete,” Moulton said, despite previously supporting bills protecting trans women and girls’ participation in women’s sports. “But as a Democrat, I’m supposed to be afraid to say that.”
Meanwhile, on an episode of his podcastCalifornia Gov. Gavin Newsom — who, like Gallego, has been floated as a potential 2028 Democratic nominee — agreed with right-wing Turning Point USA co-founder Charlie Kirk on the topic of trans people in sports.
“I think it’s an issue of fairness. I completely agree with you on that… it’s deeply unfair,” Newsom said after Kirk brought up a hypothetical scenario in which a trans girl won a state track championship. Last week, Newsom and California’s governing body for school sports announced a “pilot program” to prevent a trans student athlete from competing with cis opponents following online threats by Trump against the state and student.
Leave a Reply