Biden to veto GOP bill protecting women's sports, calls it 'discrimination' against transgender students

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The White House vowed Monday that President Biden will veto a bill that would prevent biological males from participating in women's sports should it pass both houses of Congress.

The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, or H.R. 734, was introduced by Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., and is expected to come to a vote on the House floor sometime this week. 

"The Administration strongly opposes House passage of H.R. 734," the White House said in a statement. "For students nationwide, participating in sports and being part of a team is an important part of growing up, staying engaged in school, and learning leadership and life skills. H.R. 734 would deny access to sports for many families by establishing an absolute ban on transgender students—even those as young as elementary schoolers—playing on a team consistent with their gender identity." 

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President Joe Biden leaves following services at St. Edmond Catholic Church in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, on April 15, 2023. (SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

"Schools, coaches, and athletic associations around the country are already working with families to develop participation rules that are fair and that take into account particular sports, grade levels, and levels of competition. As a national ban that does not account for competitiveness or grade level, H.R. 734 targets people for who they are and therefore is discriminatory," it said. 

The statement accused politicians of dictating a "one-size-fits-all requirement that forces coaches to remove kids from their teams," and argued transgender youth across the country were already facing a mental health crisis.

It claimed such a law was "unnecessary," and that it "hurts families and students."

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Representative Greg Steube, a Republican from Florida, listens during a House Judiciary Subcommittee hearing in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, July 29, 2020. (Mandel Ngan/AFP/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

"Discrimination has no place in our nation’s schools or on our playing fields. Instead of addressing the pressing issues that families and students face today—such as raising teacher pay, keeping guns out of schools, addressing the mental health crisis our youth face, and helping students learn and recover academically from unprecedented disruptions—Congressional Republicans have instead chosen to prioritize policies that discriminate against children," the White House said.

"If the President were presented with H.R. 734, he would veto it," it added.

Under Steube’s bill, educational institutions that receive Title IX funding from the federal government would not be allowed to "permit a person whose sex is male to participate in an athletic program or activity that is designed for women or girls."

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Tree Crane, 17, poses for a photograph following a rally where hundreds gathered in support of transgender youth at the Utah State Capitol Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2023, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

The bill says that the sex of an athlete would be recognized only by their "reproductive biology and genetics at birth." The legislation would allow transgender female athletes to train or practice in a girls’ athletic program, but only if no biological female athlete is deprived of a roster spot.

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Democrats have made it clear that most or all of them will oppose the bill on the floor. The House Education and Workforce Committee approved the legislation in a 25-17 vote – every Republican voted for it, and only Democrats voted against it.

Fox News' Peter Kasperowicz contributed to this report.