By Daniel Trotta
(Reuters) -U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon on Monday threatened the state of California with legal action after the state refused to ban transgender girls from participating in girls’ sports as demanded by President Donald Trump’s administration.
“@CAgovernor, you’ll be hearing from @AGPamBondi,” McMahon wrote, using the handles for California Governor Newsom and U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi.
McMahon’s statement on X was the latest salvo in the culture wars over transgender youth and ratchets up the personal rivalry between Trump and Newsom. Trump has made reversing advances in transgender rights a priority since returning to office on January 20, while California law has allowed student-athletes to participate in sports in alignment with their gender identity since 2013.
The Justice Department declined to comment and the Education Department did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for clarification on the meaning of McMahon’s comment.
California’s state Education Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Newsom’s office and the California Interscholastic Federation, the governing body for high school sports, declined to comment.
The U.S. Education Department issued a statement in June declaring California in violation of the Trump administration’s interpretation of Title IV, the education law banning sex-based discrimination, and demanding the state alter its policy. The state rejected the federal government’s directive, and in June filed a pre-enforcement lawsuit against the U.S. Justice Department in anticipation of legal action.
With controversy brewing ahead of the state high school track and field championship in June, the CIF allowed girls displaced from the finals by a transgender athlete to also be granted space to compete. The CIF also allowed girls to appear on the winners’ podium if they would have won a medal without a transgender athlete competing.
As a result, the CIF crowned two champions in the girls’ high jump and triple jump after transgender girl AB Hernandez won both events.
(Reporting by Daniel Trotta in Carlsbad, California; Editing by David Gregorio)
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