Mobile Courant

U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) recently addressed the Senate Republican Leadership's weekly press conference to discuss the outcome of a vote on his proposed legislation, the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act. The bill aimed to make permanent an Executive Order signed by former President Donald Trump, which banned men from competing in women's sports.

During his remarks, Tuberville criticized Democrats for not supporting the bill. "I sat up last night trying to think of a word to describe what happened yesterday to girls and women across this country," he said. "It’s amazing to me that anybody would be against [protecting] girls’ and women’s sports—but that’s what happened yesterday for the third time since I’ve been here for going on five years."

Tuberville expressed concern over the impact of male athletes participating in women's sports, stating, "Men in women’s sports—the Democrats say ‘There’s only a few.’ But it doesn’t take but one to injure somebody." He also raised issues about funding disparities due to NIL money not reaching women's sports.

He challenged his Democratic colleagues: "So, today I’m challenging my Democrat colleagues: think about it, sleep on it, understand it. Because you’re going to have to own every bit of this because every Republican voted for it, every Democrat voted against it."

The debate over male participation in female sports has been a significant issue among voters. A recent New York Times poll found that 79% of respondents opposed men participating in women's sports, reflecting a bipartisan consensus.

Despite support from some quarters, including backing from the White House ahead of the Senate vote, Tuberville's bill was blocked by 45 Democrats who voted against proceeding with the legislation.

Senator Tuberville has also introduced other related bills earlier this year, including one aimed at banning men from competing in U.S. Olympic women's sports.

Senator Tommy Tuberville represents Alabama and serves on several Senate committees including Armed Services and Agriculture.