Tim Scott uses closing arguments to send shot at transgender athletes in women's sports

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Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., used his 45-second closing arguments during Wednesday night’s Republican presidential debate to take a shot at trans women participating in women’s sports. 

The GOP presidential candidate brought up things his mother instilled in him when he was younger, and it eventually led to his final point that received some cheers from the crowd. 

"If you’re able-bodied in America, you work. If you take out a loan, you pay it back. If you commit a violent crime, you got to jail. And if God made you a man, you play sports against men," Scott said. 

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Sen. Tim Scott was pressed on his spending record at Wednesday night's first GOP debate in Milwaukee. (Fox News)

Transgender athletes’ inclusion in women’s sports has been a hot topic across the country, which is why it was one of the debate topics on Wednesday night. 

"Save Women’s Sports" has become a rallying cry for many, including Riley Gaines, Caitlyn Jenner and others who use their platform to speak out against the disadvantages women and girls have when competing against trans women. 

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But that stance has received pushback as well, including from President Biden. 

In April, the House of Representatives passed the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, though not a single Democrat voted in favor of the bill. 

But the White House said that, if the bill were to go through the Senate, President Biden would veto it. 

"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," the White House said of the bill.

That hasn’t stopped more than 20 states from passing new laws and regulating policies on trans women in women’s sports. 

In Texas, SB 15, which was signed into law in June, prohibits biological males from competing in women’s sports in colleges and universities across the state. It followed a similar piece of legislation that Gov. Greg Abbott signed in 2021 that required public schools through the high school level to have teams "designated by students’ sex assigned at birth."

Republican presidential candidate Sen. Tim Scott during Wednesday's debate. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Scott’s state of South Carolina signed into law the "Save Women’s Sports Act" in 2022, which banned transgender students from participating in girls’ or women’s sports in public schools and colleges. 

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The debate will continue to grow, especially with the presidential election coming next year. The country certainly know where Scott stands on it.