Trump jokes Saudis are baffled by concept of trans athletes: ‘They don’t do a lot of transitioning’

WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump rolled into the US–Saudi Investment Forum in Washington, DC, on November 19 and immediately began talking about transgender athletes.

According to Trump, Saudi investors were left scratching their heads as he tried to explain America’s ongoing debate over who gets to compete in women’s sports. He told the audience that Saudis think Americans are “crazy” for pushing policies that allow transgender women to play in women’s leagues. 

Trump mocks transgender sports debate, says Saudis are baffled

Hosted at the Kennedy Center, the forum turned into an impromptu stand-up moment when Trump recounted watching a congressman go to bat for what he called biological men competing in women’s sports.

“The man was 119 pounds higher than a woman champion, who was a phenomenal champion,” Trump said. “Beat her by 119, and he was an average lifter prior to transitioning. A lot of the Saudis are sitting here saying, ‘What the hell is he talking about, transitioning?’” He said the Saudis “don’t do a lot of transitioning.”

“The Saudis are saying, ‘What is he talking about?’” he said. “They’re saying, ‘What do you mean women are playing against men? No, that doesn’t happen, does it?’ Yeah, it does. These people are crazy.”

Democrats urge Supreme Court to back transgender athletes

This comes as 130 congressional Democrats recently filed an amicus brief urging the Supreme Court to rule in favor of two transgender athletes, Becky Pepper-Jackson of West Virginia and Lindsay Hecox. Notably, Pepper-Jackson successfully knocked down a state ban preventing biological males from competing in girls’ sports, while Hecox beat a similar law in Idaho to run on Boise State’s women’s cross-country team.

Among those who signed on are Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Rep Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York, and Rep Nancy Pelosi of California.

Trump’s visa ban blocks transgender athletes under new order

In August, the Department of Homeland Security updated visa rules to stop transgender women from traveling to the US for elite women’s sporting events.

US Citizenship and Immigration Services issued guidance blocking trans women from obtaining “extraordinary ability” visas, though the guidance never actually used the word “transgender.” Instead, it referred to “male athletes” seeking to compete in women’s sports.

It all traces back to an executive order Trump rolled out at the start of his second term. The “No Men in Women’s Sports” executive order was his fourth targeting transgender people since taking office on January 20.

“The radical left has waged an all-out campaign to erase the very concept of biological sex and replace it with a militant transgender ideology,” Trump declared at the time, flanked by dozens of women and girls at the White House. “With this executive order, the war on women’s sports is over."

A New York Times/Ipsos survey in January found that most Americans (including a majority of Democrats) are not on board with transgender athletes competing against women. Out of 2,128 participants, 79% said biological males who identify as women should be barred from women’s competitions. That includes 67% of Democrats or Democrat-leaners.