Newsom becomes most prominent Democrat to buck the party and echo majority public opinion on trans athletes
CNN
Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom is no stranger to going against the grain on significant social issues.
Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom is no stranger to going against the grain on significant social issues. Four years before California voters passed a ballot initiative banning same-sex marriage in 2008, then-San Francisco Mayor Newsom instructed the city clerk to issue marriage licenses to gay couples, defying federal law and solidifying his reputation as a longtime ally of the LGBTQ community. That history was top of mind for several Democrats last week, when the governor said in his new podcast that transgender girls and women participating in female sports leagues is “deeply unfair.” The comments made him the most prominent Democrat to buck the party and echo public opinion on an issue that helped shape the 2024 election and could be a political liability once more in 2028. The episode quickly made good on the promise of the podcast, advertised as a place where the governor would “answer the hard questions.” Chief among those: Are there limits to the party’s support for transgender Americans? “The issue of fairness is completely legit,” Newsom said on “This Is Gavin Newsom” last week. “And we’ve got to own that. We’ve got to acknowledge it.” Democrats have spent the last several years pushing back on a wave of anti-transgender bills and rhetoric led by Republicans, including Donald Trump, who made banning transgender athletes from women’s sports a key part of his 2024 campaign.
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