Morning Jolt: Get Ready for the Democratic Retreat on Trans Athletes

WITH JIM GERAGHTY

March 07 2025

Get Ready for the Democratic Retreat on Trans Athletes

On the menu today: Swaths of Los Angeles still look like a postapocalyptic hellscape, so perhaps it's only fitting that the California governor known for his cold stare and slicked-back hair is emulating the shapeshifting abilities of the T-1000 from Terminator 2. (And you thought comparisons of California governors to Terminators would end with Arnold Schwarzenegger!) We all suspected Gavin Newsom wanted to run for president in 2028. But the way he's talking about transgender athletes in women's sports, he might be aiming for the Republican nomination. Look out for that bus, transgender athletes, because Newsom's sudden about-face suggests that Democrats are ready to throw you under it.

Gavin Newsom Changes Shape

Way back in August 2013 — two years before Donald Trump descended the escalator and announced he was running for president — the state of California enacted a law ...