House passes GOP bill to bar trans athletes on girls and women's teams
CBSN
Washington — The Republican-led House passed a bill Thursday that would bar schools and colleges that receive federal money from allowing transgender athletes whose biological sex assigned at birth was male to compete on girls or women's sports teams or athletic events.
The legislation, known as the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, was approved by a party-line vote of 219 to 203. It's unlikely to advance further, since the Democratic-led Senate will not support it and the White House said President Biden would veto it.
Supporters said the legislation, which would put violators at risk of losing taxpayer dollars, is necessary to ensure competitive fairness. They framed the vote as supporting female athletes disadvantaged by having to compete against those whose gender identify does not match their sex assigned at birth. Opponents criticized the bill as ostracizing an already vulnerable group for political gain.
More employees of the Environmental Protection Agency were informed Wednesday that their jobs appear in doubt. Senior leadership at the EPA held an all-staff meeting to tell individuals that President Trump's executive order, "Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing," which was responsible for the closure of the agency's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion office, will likely lead to the shuttering of the Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights as well.
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The quick-fire volley of tariffs between the U.S. and China in recent days has heightened global fears of a new trade war between the world's two largest economies. Yet while experts think the battle is likely to escalate, they also say the early skirmishes offer hope for an agreement on trade and other key issues that could head off a larger conflict.