Senate Dems face backlash after trans athlete invoice fails to interrupt filibuster

Senate Democrats faced backlash on Monday after the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act failed to garner the votes it needed to break the filibuster.

Republicans needed 60 votes but only received 51. No Democrats sided with Republicans on the bill. Two Democrats were absent from the vote, as were two Republicans. The bill failed, 51-45.

President Donald Trump signs an executive order barring biological male transgender athletes from competing in women’s or girls’ sporting events on Feb. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act would require Title IX to treat gender as “recognized based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth” and would disallow any adjustment for it to apply to gender identity.

The bill was introduced by Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., and has more than 40 co-sponsors in the Senate. It would also codify one of Trump’s many recent executive orders, giving the policy better longevity.

House Speaker Rep. Mike Johnson, R-La., and activists who have fought for fairness in women’s and girls’ sports were among those who ripped Senate Democrats over the lack of support for the bill. Two House Dems voted in favor of the bill in January.

President Donald Trump signs an executive order barring biological male transgender athletes from competing in women’s or girls’ sporting events on Feb. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

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“That is shocking. I cannot believe that the Democrats will not go along with common sense on this and the protection of women and girls,” Johnson told Fox News.

Riley Gaines, Jennifer Sey and others weighed in on social media.

President Donald Trump issued an executive order last month to prohibit biological males from competing in women’s and girls’ sports. The order would withhold federal funding from states that continue to have transgender inclusion in women’s and girls’ sports.