Not a single Democrat actively participated in Wednesday’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on protecting women’s sports. Democrats did not show up, did not fill their two witness seats, or question the witnesses who were impacted by males competing in women’s sports.
Democrat Sen. Dick Durbin, the ranking member of the committee, claimed that America does not care about men competing in women’s sports and diverted his opening statement to his own agenda, then left. The other nine Democrat members on the committee did not show up.
According to polling, over 70% of Americans disagree with biological men competing in women’s sports, and over 60% favor laws that would require transgender athletes to compete on teams that match their biological sex instead of their gender identity.
“Women should not again be asked to cede their opportunities just to make men comfortable,” Chairman Chuck Grassley said in his opening remarks.
Grassley continued, claiming it is not a coincidence that as soon as women’s sports started receiving the recognition they deserve, men attempted to come in and take away their opportunities.
Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., clarified that the issue of men competing in women’s sports is not about gender dysphoria, but about protecting women’s rights, and the witnesses agreed.
Sen. Ashley Moody, R-Fla., pointed to the countless times Republicans have raised this issue in Congress while Democrats either do not show up or vote “no.” Federal lawmakers have voted to pass legislation three times this Congress. “Not one Democrat voted to protect women’s sports,” Moody said.
The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025 is one of nearly 700 pieces of House-passed legislation awaiting a vote in the Senate. It was introduced and passed in the House in January 2025, in the first 14 days of the session. Although final passage would require only a simple majority, the bill would first need to overcome the Senate filibuster, requiring some support from Democrats.
While American athletes await federal legislation, President Donald Trump and state legislatures have taken action.
In February 2025, Trump signed an executive order banning men from competing in women’s sports, using Title IX compliance to implement it. This June, the Supreme Court sided with states, ruling that it is within their authority to pass laws banning men from competing in women’s sports. Now, 27 states have laws that determine eligibility based on biological sex.
Kim Jones, co-founder of the Independent Council on Women’s Sports and the mother of daughters who were forced to compete against male athletes, appeared as a witness.
At the hearing, Jones raised issues with some state laws and regulations that allow birth certificates to be used as proof of sex. She argued that birth certificates are easy to change and edits can be made within a day. She asked that new laws be written to require DNA testing, and specifically SRY gene testing, which detects the presence of the Y chromosome and can easily be used to verify biological sex.
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[ H/T The Daily Signal ]
