Ending the Backlash

Susan Estrich on Jul 25, 2026

"Ending the Backlash on LGBTQI+ Issues" is the title of the report out this week from the respected liberal think tank The Center for American Progress. As you might expect, the Center report urges Democrats to stand firm in supporting transgender soldiers and gender-transition care. But when it comes to girls' sports, it's not what you think.

This is what the liberal group has to say:

"The NCAA recently promulgated a restriction on transgender women playing in women's sports, a decision that it deemed appropriate for its level of competition and the sports it governs. Other associations, such as the National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association, have passed policies allowing students to participate according to their gender identity. This is where these decisions appropriately lie: with sports' governing bodies or schools themselves rather than with politicians. While local bodies and associations should minimize unnecessary exclusion, restrictions may be appropriate under some circumstances."

"Restrictions may be appropriate under some circumstances." Hallelujah. Not that I'm in favor of restrictions. I'm just against losing elections over them."

"We hope that this lowers the temperature and lets us come out of this really scary moment for folks," said Caleb Smith, CAP's director of LGBTQI+ policy, who is transgender and a co-author of the paper.

Thank you, Caleb. You have, hopefully, given Democrats a place to stand without facing too much backlash.

Americans are not voting based on transgender issues. They don't show up on the list with the war and the economy and affordability. But issues like transgender discrimination unfortunately play into that calculus of character, of whose side are you on, that has been wielded so effectively against Democratic candidates.

When Democratic Ohio gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton said last month that she does not "support boys playing in girls' sports," her statement prompted criticism from Democratic advocacy groups and liberal state lawmakers who accused her of dismissing the identities of trans people.

From what I've heard, Amy Acton is a great candidate. What are we doing attacking her? Of all the people to attack, she should not be one. Don't we want her to win?

An overwhelming majority of American voters don't think transgender girls should play girls' sports. I don't happen to be one of them. I feel bad for the handful of girls -- and it's usually just a handful -- who lose out most directly when a district adopts "appropriate restrictions."

But is it worth risking an election over?

Remember the ad of President Donald Trump's -- the most effective of the campaign -- using transgender care in prison to attack Kamala Harris for standing for they/them while Donald Trump stands for you. The Harris campaign said they had nothing to say to blunt it. That can't be right. Or it can't be right again.

Barney Frank of Massachusetts was the first openly gay member of Congress and a fierce fighter for gay rights. Before he died this past year, he gave a series of interviews, which I wrote about, in which he cautioned the party not to move too fast on transgender rights, and in particular girls' sports. Barney talked about how the gay rights movement moved toward marriage equality but didn't start there. We have work to be done, which starts with winning the election of people who are willing to recognize the full range of gender equality, even if it comes with some "appropriate restrictions."

The Center report concludes that "all athletes deserve fair competition and a level playing field." I believe that. And we shall achieve it one day. Caleb's report, and Barney's wisdom, will hopefully bring us closer to that day.

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