Trump's Consultants Didn't Want Him to Call Out Transgender Athletes
Donald Trump said his consultants warned him against speaking about transgender athletes during a speech on Tuesday.Trump gave the keynote address at the America First Agenda Summit, where he spoke out against the inclusion of transgender women on women's sports team.The issue has emerged as a rallying cry among many conservatives who argue trans women have an unfair advantage over their competitors.
Advocates for the transgender community, however, argue that trans athletes are typically only able to compete after transitioning and that critics are using transphobic attacks against an already vulnerable community.During the speech, Trump discussed the inclusion of transgender athletes as one of many problems facing the United States, arguing it is "disrespectful to women" and "unfair" to allow trans women to play on women's sports teams."By the way, we should not allow men to play in women's sports," he said.The remark was met with loud applause from the audience, made up of Trump's conservative supporters, prompting him to add that it was "not even written down anywhere," yet it "got the biggest" applause."So crazy.
It just shows you what all of these political geniuses—I have all of these consultants, all these great, 'Sir, don't say that, it's very controversial,'" he said.It wasn't the only slight Trump made against the transgender community during the speech.
He said he opposes allowing children access to puberty blockers, treatment that prevents puberty from occurring in transgender people.He also compared allowing transgender women to play on women's sports teams to asking LeBron James to transition and join a women's basketball team, a comparison he has made before and that drew ample attention on Twitter.
