VICTOR JOECKS: Trump fought back on transgender agenda

Protecting women’s sports is a winning issue — at least for those willing to fight for it.

Donald Trump will soon be returning to the White House. I believe that’s a great thing for the country, although I know many of my readers feel otherwise. There will be plenty of time to discuss Trump’s plans to close the border, boost the economy and reduce energy costs.

But before moving on from the election, consider how Trump approached transgender issues.

As a reminder, many in the Democratic Party believe that men can become women, that a man who says he’s a woman should compete on women’s sports teams and be welcomed into women’s locker rooms, and that schools should indoctrinate children into this madness. They believe that doctors should be allowed to remove the breasts of young girls and the penises of young boys.

Read that again. I know it’s uncomfortable to read, but it has happened thousands of times around the country.

These policies are deeply unpopular. But the propaganda press doesn’t push Democrats on the repulsive details. Leftists hide their radicalism behind benign euphemisms and lob insults at those who dare to object.

When Republicans cower in fear at these tactics, they lose. But that’s not Trump. He fights. No wonder so many Republicans love him.

He spent tens of millions of dollars on ads attacking Vice President Kamala Harris for supporting taxpayer-funded sex-change operations for prisoners. He also blasted her for supporting men competing in women’s sports. One ad on this issue “shifted the race 2.7 percentage points in Mr. Trump’s favor after viewers watched it,” The New York Times reported.

The issue was so effective that, according to the Times, former President Bill Clinton said privately, “We have to answer it and say we won’t do it.” The Harris campaign didn’t take that advice.

Other Democrats tried. Colin Allred, a Democrat House member who ran for U.S. Senate in Texas, once co-sponsored the Equality Act. That benign-sounding bill would have forced schools to allow men in women’s sports. But during his campaign, he claimed he didn’t support that.

Sam Brown is likely to narrowly lose to Sen. Jacky Rosen. But he outperformed his Real Clear Politics polling average by 4 points. In the weeks before the election, Brown vocally supported the UNR volleyball team’s refusal to play against a man on San Jose State’s team. Even though he’s unlikely to win, Brown’s stance on this issue clearly helped him.

Democrats could take this issue off the table by belatedly returning to the position almost everyone agreed on 10 years ago. Adults can make their own decisions, but you don’t get to impose your delusions on the rest of us, especially children.

That doesn’t appear likely. One battleground is going to be the Clark County School District, which elected three incredible leaders — Emily Stevens, Lydia Dominguez and Lorena Biassotti. Leftists are already upset they may push back on the district’s transgender indoctrination efforts.

Nevada Republicans, sadly including Gov. Joe Lombardo, usually avoid this battle. That’s a mistake, both on the merits and politically.

Look at the election. Voters want leaders who will stand up against the left’s transgender insanity.

Contact Victor Joecks at vjoecks@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4698. Follow @victorjoecks on X.