Trump threatens to cut off California funding over trans athlete
Donald Trump has threatened to strip California of 'large-scale' federal funding after a transgender long jumper took first place in a state competition.
The US president accused Gavin Newsom, the California governor, of breaking the law and defying an executive order he issued early in his term barring biological men from participating in women's sports.
He said he would personally intervene to stop the athlete, who won both the long jump and triple jumps at California's Southern Section contest for under-19s on May 17, from competing in the state finals this weekend.
Mr Trump said the trans athlete was 'practically unbeatable' in the girl's category, calling their participation 'not fair, and totally demeaning to women and girls'.
'California, under the leadership of radical Left Democrat Gavin Newscum, continues to illegally allow 'men to play in women's sports,'' the president wrote on his Truth Social platform.
'Please be hereby advised that large scale federal funding will be held back, maybe permanently, if the executive order on this subject matter is not adhered to.'
Noting that Mr Newsom had previously voiced scepticism of biological men competing in women's sports, Mr Trump continued: 'I will speak to him today to find out which way he wants to go???
'In the meantime I am ordering local authorities, if necessary, to not allow the transitioned person to compete in the state finals. This is a totally ridiculous situation.'
Mr Newsom broke from many of his fellow Democrats in February when he said it was 'deeply unfair' to allow trans competitors into women's sports.
'I think it's an issue of fairness... it's deeply unfair. We've got to own that. We've got to acknowledge it,' he said.
Katie McGuinness, who took second place with a 19ft long jump in the Southern Section contest, said she felt there was 'nothing else' that she could have done.
'I was honestly very discouraged, and I'm a high school senior and winning CIF [California Interscholastic Federation] has always been a goal of mine, and I wasn't able to compete with someone who was genetically different than me,' she told Fox News.
'There are just certain genetic advantages that biological males have that biological girls don't,' she continued. 'Frankly, I just can't stand for that.'
Mr Newsom's office has been approached for comment.
Mr Trump has repeatedly threatened to cut federal funding from states and institutions which he sees as seeking to defy his agenda.
On Tuesday, his administration reportedly ordered federal agencies to cancel any remaining contracts with Harvard University, worth around £100 million, after it refused to bend to a series of demands its leadership claimed would erode academic independence.
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