Chris Kluwe, a former NFL punter who was recently thrust into the national spotlight after he was arrested at a California city council meeting, voiced his support for lawmakers who blocked the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act from moving forward in the Senate.
Republican lawmakers failed to get the 60 votes needed to break a filibuster.
Not a single Senate Democrat voted in favor of the bill. Two Republicans and two Democrats were absent from the vote.
Kluwe, who played for the Minnesota Vikings his entire career, reacted in a post on BlueSky.
"I support and am happy the party came together to stop this," Kluwe wrote. "However, this is what they should be doing on EVERYTHING. I’ve said it before and I’ll keep saying it - we are in an existential crisis as a country. We’re either going to emerge as Americans, or as something else."
The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act would require Title IX to treat gender as "recognized based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth" and would disallow any adjustment for it to apply to gender identity.
The bill was introduced by Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., and has more than 40 co-sponsors in the Senate. It would also codify one of Trump's many recent executive orders, giving the policy better longevity.
President Donald Trump issued an executive order last month to prohibit biological males from competing in women's and girls sports. The order would withhold federal funding from states that continue to allow transgender inclusion in women's and girls sports.
Fox News’ Julia Johnson contributed to this report.
Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr is calling on NBA officials to whistle traveling, one of the most basic rules violations in basketball, more often.
Kerr, 59, was assessed a technical foul during the third quarter of the Warriors' 119-101 win over the Charlotte Hornets Monday after what he thought was an obvious travel wasn’t called.
"I don’t understand why we are not teaching our officials to call travel in this league," Kerr told reporters after the game. "They do a great job and work their tails off and communicate well, but I see five or six travels a game that aren’t called.
"You know it's a problem when there are like a hundred fans in the stands and every coach on the sideline when I'm watching film and everyone is (signaling for a travel call). Everyone is seeing it, so we are clearly not teaching as a league our officials to look at the feet."
Kerr called out his own team, saying he saw the Warriors commit four traveling violations that were not called in their loss to the Philadelphia 76ers Saturday.
Kerr said a change regarding traveling violations needs to happen "for the good of the game."
"The entire game is based on footwork," Kerr said. "We need enforce traveling violations, and we are not doing it. And I don't understand why. ... These (officials) are awesome. They do a great job, and they have a million things to watch, but footwork is the entire basis of the game, and we need to call traveling. It will be a much better game if we clean it up."
The Warriors play the New York Knicks Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. ET, and Kerr will likely be monitoring traveling calls.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., made her position visibly clear on whether she believes women and girls should be protected from trans inclusion in sports.
Warren was seen giving an exaggerated thumbs down gesture while voting no on the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act Monday night.
Warren held her thumb down for several seconds in the face of the clerk tallying her vote. The clerk even had to tell Warren, "I got you," to assure her that her vote had been counted as the senator held her gesture for an exaggerated amount of time.
Footage of the senator's gesture prompted widespread backlash on social media, especially by women's rights activists.
Independent Council on Women's Sports co-founder Marshi Smith condemned Warren in a response on X.
"Hard to believe someone could hate little girls who just want a spot on the girls’ team and the girls’ podium this much," Smith wrote.
The British U.K.-based feminist YouTuber Kellie-Jay Keen questioned how anyone in the U.S. could vote for someone like Warren in an X response.
"Why would any woman in the USA continue to support these woman hating a--holes?" Keen wrote.
Feminist author Kara Dansky, a Democrat, replied to the clip by posting a long X response that included a note she wrote to Warren ahead of the 2020 election.
"The Democratic party is pushing the narrative that ‘transgender’ and ‘queer’ belong in the same category as gay rights, and that is problematic for several reasons: (1) it is not true, (2) it is bad for women and girls, and (3) it is likely to lead to a loss in 2020," Dansky posted.
Fox News Digital reached out to Warren's office for comment.
Warren has a history of support for trans inclusion in women's and girls' sports and even once called legislation to prevent it "cruel."
In February 2020, Warren condemned an Arizona state bill, the Save Women's Sports Act, that would have prevented biological males from competing in girls' sports.
"Trans athletes are not a threat," Warren wrote on X (then known as Twitter). "We need to protect trans kids – and all LGBTQ+ kids – and ensure they feel safe and welcomed at school. I urge the Arizona legislature to reject this cruel bill."
Now, Warren has helped prevent a bill that would offer female athletes the same protections on a national level.
Republicans needed 60 votes but only received 51. No Democrats sided with Republicans on the bill. Two Democrats were absent from the vote, as were two Republicans. The bill failed, 51-45.
During a recent interview on CNN's "The Arena with Kasie Hunt," Warren was asked why she thought Democrats lost to President Donald Trump in November, and if the party had moved too far to the left culturally. Warren's response indicated that she didn't believe that was the case.
"I think the problem is we didn't make clear what we fight for and really get out there and fight for it. Our job right now is pretty straightforward. Just tell the truth," Warren said.
A national exit poll conducted by the Concerned Women for America legislative action committee found that 70% of moderate voters saw the issue of "Donald Trump’s opposition to transgender boys and men playing girls' and women’s sports and of transgender boys and men using girls' and women’s bathrooms" as important to them.
Additionally, 6% said it was the most important issue of all, while 44% said it was "very important."
Meanwhile, a recent New York Times/Ipsos poll found that the vast majority of Americans, including 67% of Democrats, don't believe trans athletes should be able to compete in women's sports.
Last month, a Gallup poll also showed a 45% plurality of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents saying they wanted the party to become more moderate, an 11-point increase since the beginning of President Joe Biden’s term in 2021.
The Democratic Party has largely struggled since Trump’s election in 2024. In a Quinnipiac University survey conducted during Trump’s first week in office, only 31% of respondents had a favorable opinion of the Democratic Party.
Now, with Senate Democrats voting unanimously to block the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, many activists, including Riley Gaines, have vowed to help unseat the senators who prevented it from passing.
Former NFL sideline reporter Michele Tafoya theorized Tuesday why Senate Democrats failed to break a filibuster and express support for keeping biological males out of women’s and girls sports.
No Senate Democrat voted in favor of the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act to break a filibuster.
Republicans needed 60 votes but only received 51. On the same day, in Minnesota, House lawmakers there voted against the Preserving Girls’ Sports Act. Each Democratic lawmaker in the state voted against the legislation.
"Part of me is starting to think they didn’t want to give the president a ‘W’ the day before he is going to address Congress tonight, that joint session of Congress," Tafoya told Dakich. "And so they all just — and, seriously, politicians collude — and they all got together and said, 'We can’t do this. We can’t give him this win, so let’s just vote no.' And they stick together, man. They stick together."
Democratic Minnesota state Rep. Liish Kozlowski likened the Preserving Girls’ Sports Act to "state-sanctioned bullying and genocide" during a debate about the legislation Monday, according to OutKick.
It’s the same type of language Hannah Edwards, executive director of Transforming Families, used in a news release from Democratic Minnesota state Rep. Leigh Finke in January after Trump signed an executive order targeting federal funding of transgender healthcare.
"It’s ridiculous, and I’m trying to get my head around, like do people really buy into this, that this is some sort of trans genocide because boys shouldn’t play in girls sports?" Tafoya said. "It makes no sense. We have some pretty radical Democrats here in Minnesota, I mean, like really radical. And so that’s what we’re dealing with.
"I don’t know how that language is received by the average person. If I’m considered the average person, I think that person’s a lunatic suggesting that. I don’t know how these people keep getting elected."
In one of Pete Rose's final known interviews just 10 days before his death, he talked about his potential Hall of Fame induction.
Rose, who died at 83 in September from hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, came to a conclusion about his Hall of Fame chances.
"I’ve come to the conclusion, I hope I’m wrong, I’ll make the Hall of Fame after I die," Rose said to sportscaster John Condit in footage aired on "Fox & Friends" for the first time on Tuesday.
"Which I totally disagree with because the Hall of Fame is for two reasons: your fans and your family," he said in the clip. "It’s for your family if you’re here. It’s for your fans if you’re here, not if you’re 10 feet under."
"What’s the point? Because they’ll make money over it? The Hall of Fame is for what you did on the field, not what you did off the field."
Rose would undoubtedly be in the Baseball Hall of Fame if his statistics on the field outweighed breaking the golden rule in the sport.
Rose is MLB’s hit king, with 4,256 career hits. He was the National League MVP in 1974, was a 17-time All-Star, three-time World Series champion, and three-time batting title winner.
However, the Cincinnati Reds star became a polarizing figure when news of his gambling on games rocked the sports world. Rose received a lifetime ban from MLB in 1989 due to his gambling.
In the exclusive interview, Rose said he was not bitter about his banishment from Cooperstown.
"When you make a mistake, don’t be bitter to other people. I wish I hadn’t made the mistake, but I did, it’s history, get over it."
"I didn’t hurt any of my fans by betting on the game of baseball, and by the way betting on the game of baseball to win. Every game I played in I wanted to win. I happened to win more than anybody else, but that’s OK, not bad," Rose said with a smile.
President Donald Trump said in a Truth Social post last Friday night that he will sign a complete pardon for Rose.
"Major League Baseball didn’t have the courage or decency to put the late, great, Pete Rose, also known as ‘Charlie Hustle,’ into the Baseball Hall of fame. Now he is dead, will never experience the thrill of being selected, even though he was a FAR BETTER PLAYER than most of those who made it, and can only be named posthumously. WHAT A SHAME!" Trump posted.
"Anyway, over the next few weeks I will be signing a complete PARDON of Pete Rose, who shouldn’t have been gambling on baseball, but only bet on HIS TEAM WINNING. He never betted against himself, or the other team. He had the most hits, by far, in baseball history, and won more games than anyone in sports history. Baseball, which is dying all over the place, should get off its fat, lazy a--, and elect Pete Rose, even though far too late, into the Baseball Hall of Fame!"
Rose applied for reinstatement in 2020 and 2022, especially with legalized sports betting happening across the country. However, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred denied both requests, pointing to the Veteran’s Committee for any Hall of Fame discussions regarding Rose. Manfred also shot down any speculation about Rose’s reinstatement in 2023, as the league had partnerships with sportsbooks.
Manfred is reportedly considering a petition from Rose’s family to have him posthumously removed from baseball’s ineligible list. Which would potentially open the door for Rose to make the Hall of Fame and make his conclusion about his enshrinement true.
Although he isn't in the Baseball Hall of Fame, the Reds inducted Rose into their own hall of fame in 2016, retiring his No. 14. He made several appearances in MLB ballparks in recent years before his death.
Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving will reportedly miss the remainder of the NBA season after he suffered a knee injury during a game against the Sacramento Kings on Monday night.
Irving was diagnosed with a torn ACL, ESPN reported.
Irving, a nine-time NBA All-Star, fell and landed awkwardly on his knee in the first half of Monday's game. The Mavs star was in visible pain as tears ran down his face. He was able to remain in the game long enough to make both of his free throw attempts, before he was helped off the court.
He was then ruled out for the remainder of the game.
"That's just who, I mean, Kai's a tough guy," Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd said. "I asked him as they were taking him off the court, 'Are you good if you leave without shooting? You're ruled out.' So they took him to the free-throw line, and he shot the free throws and then we got him out."
Irving appeared to suffer the serious injury when he was fouled as he drove to the basket. The 2016 NBA champion's right foot landed on the foot of a Kings player during the play, causing him to lose his balance.
The Mavericks did not offer an update about Irving's status after Monday's game, but Kidd described it as an unfortunate moment.
"Just unlucky," Kidd said. "I hope that he's healthy, that it's not serious."
Irving grabbed his knee and stayed on the hardwood for several minutes after he hit the floor.
Following Monday's matchup with the Kings, Irving is averaging 24.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game this season. He has become the focal point of Dallas' offense since superstar guard Luka Doncic was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers early last month.
Irving's injury marks the latest setback for the Mavericks, who have already played the past couple of weeks with Anthony Davis. Dallas acquired Davis in the blockbuster Doncic trade.
The center suffered an injury in his Mavericks' debut on Feb. 8. The Mavs return to action on Wednesday when they take on the Bucks in Milwaukee.
NBA figures have jumped into a "face of the league" debate just weeks after the criticism the All-Star Game received in comparison to the NHL’s 4 Nations Face-Off.
A former first-round draft pick out of North Carolina made his case about who he believed the face of the NBA is – Caitlin Clark.
"THE FACE OF THE NBA IS CAITLIN CLARK!!!" ex-NBA guard Rashad McCants wrote in a post Saturday on X. "Yea I said it!!!! She has handled criticism better than the people you consider THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME!!!!! @CaitlinClark22 your the GOAT!!!"
McCants then pointed to the latest news about exhibition games the Indiana Fever will be a part of.
The Fever will play an exhibition game against the Brazilian national team in Iowa before the WNBA season begins. Tickets for that game sold out in under an hour. Furthermore, the Chicago Sky moved their home games against the Fever from the Wintrust Arena to the United Center.
"Like I said THE FACE OF THE NBA!!! This is the metric. Sold out in minutes. Preseason!!! We witness her get blitz by peers, alumni, randoms, politicians, and above all else women!! She never ran from the challenge. Accepted it and rose above it! Goat!"
Last week, Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards said he didn’t want to be the face of the league. Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James empathized with that.
"Why do you wanna be the face of a league when all the people that cover our game and talk about our game on a day-to-day basis s--- on everybody?" James asked reporters Thursday.
"That responsibility – it’s just weird. It’s weird energy from the people that… I don’t know."
James said he understood where Edwards was coming from with his remarks.
"(Anthony Edwards) said he don’t want it. I mean, obviously, I didn’t ask for it; but I knew there was a responsibility for me – not only to my family, my friends, my community, and whoever that was gonna follow my journey throughout my career, not only to Ohio when I started there – but all over America and all over the world when I travel all over the world," he said.
"I’ve always taken that seriously and understood from the beginning what being a professional is all about and being a role model is all about… I feel Ant. I understand. I completely understand. It’s just weird energy when it comes to that."
Fox News’ Ryan Canfield contributed to this report.
Former ESPN broadcaster Keith Olbermann slammed Pat McAfee and called on the company to fire him on Monday following the WWE commentator’s remarks about Canada.
McAfee called Canada a "terrible country" after wrestling fans in Canada booed "The Star-Spangled Banner" performance ahead of the Elimination Chamber premium live event over the weekend. He sounded off about the backlash he received during his episode of "The Pat McAfee Show."
"A lot of us tried to warn the new espn management that the day would come when this idiot would draw them into a permanent political controversy and they could either be subsumed by it, or fire him," Olbermann said in response to McAfee’s Monday remarks. "That day is today. Fire him."
"Now, Canada, listen, there’s been some things said to me from Canadians that I guess I respect because of the passion that you have for your country — which I hope you understand that I was showing the same for mine," McAfee explained on the show. "You booed my country."
"I understand, now, from the Canadians that they have a lot more passion for their country than I could have imagined. A lot of terrible things have been said about me, and I understand it," McAfee continued.
"I didn’t say Canadians were terrible. I said your country was. You booed us. I said you were terrible. Let’s shake hands and move along. I still love Canadians… I hope it gets settled."
Boos from Canadian fans during the U.S. national anthem began amid President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canadian goods. The president paused them in February but had it start this week.
The boos continued during the 4 Nations Face-Off, leading to a fight between American and Canadian NHL players in Montreal.
Fox News’ Scott Thompson contributed to this report.
Payton McNabb, a former high school girls volleyball player who was severely injured when a transgender opponent spiked a ball in her face, will be one of President Donald Trump’s guests at his joint address to Congress on Tuesday night.
McNabb suffered the injury when she was a junior at Hiwassee Dam High School in Murphy, North Carolina, and has helped lead the charge to keep women’s and girls’ sports fair. She was one of the athletes who attended Trump’s event when he signed the "No Men in Women’s Sports" executive order.
She told Fox News on Monday she was stunned to hear she received the offer.
"It's just such an incredible honor, and I'm so thankful, and I can't believe I'm getting invited. I know that President Trump really supports what we've been fighting for and what I've been advocating for for over two years now," she said. "And he's really big on getting men out of women's sports and out of their spaces.
TUNE IN: LIVE COVERAGE OF TRUMP'S ADDRESS TO CONGRESS TUESDAY NIGHT ON FOX NEWS
"So, I think this is just his way of letting us know that he sees us and he's with us, and I'm just so thankful for that."
On the play in question, McNabb said she suffered a concussion, brain bleed and permanent whiplash. Later, she said she dealt with partial paralysis and vision problems.
McNabb said she did not expect Trump to talk about her story, but it would be "insane" if he did.
"I know that he's addressing a lot of important things. So, I'm not going to assume anything. But if he does, then I'm going to be so thankful and just really, really happy."
Trump is expected to outline his domestic and foreign policy plans with the Department of Government Efficiency expected to play a big role in the speech.
Fox News’ Caroline McKee contributed to this report.
Jose Altuve has the most starts at second base of any active MLB player, but that count may have come to a stop as the Houston Astros are planning to play Altuve mostly in left field this season, manager Joe Espada told reporters on Monday.
"Right now the plan is for him to play the majority of his games in left field," Espada said, adding that moving Altuve "back and forth is something that I am going to avoid."
It'll take some getting used to for Astros fans who've watched Altuve man the keystone since his 2011 rookie season. He won the Gold Glove in 2015, and in 2020 led the AL with the fewest errors at second base. He also helped the Astros win the 2022 World Series over the Philadelphia Phillies and the 2017 World Series over the Los Angeles Dodgers, in the year he won the AL MVP.
Altuve's bat may not be at the level it was during his MVP campaign — he hit .295 in 2024 — but his fielding hasn't taken a hit. In 2024, he committed just five errors across 146 starts at and led all AL second basemen with a fielding percentage of .989.
It's an interesting move as the Astros didn't go out and acquire a blatant replacement at second base. The idea of moving Altuve to left was first broached when the team was looking to keep third baseman Alex Bregman. If Bregman had returned to Houston, it might have forced newly acquired Isaac Paredes to shift to second base and Altuve to the outfield, but with Bregman joining the Red Sox, Paredes will remain at third.
When talking about Bregman at the team's FanFest in January, Altuve said, "Whatever I have to do for him to stay, I'm willing to do it." Asked about how difficult it would be to switch to the outfield after never playing there before, he said with a smile, "For Alex, nothing will be difficult."
Even after Bregman signed with Boston, moving Altuve to the outfield still made sense to the team.
Mauricio Dubon and Brendan Rodgers have swapped starting duties at second base throughout spring training. Dubon is a utility man who has played every position on the diamond across two seasons in Houston, while Rodgers came to Houston from the Colorado Rockies in free agency.
A nine-time All-Star and three-time batting champion, Altuve has played all but two of his 1,767 major league starts at second base.
Payton McNabb, a former high school girls volleyball player who was severely injured when a transgender opponent spiked a ball in her face, will be one of President Donald Trump’s guests at his joint address to Congress on Tuesday night.
McNabb suffered the injury when she was a junior at Hiwassee Dam High School in Murphy, North Carolina, and has helped lead the charge to keep women’s and girls’ sports fair. She was one of the athletes who attended Trump’s event when he signed the "No Men in Women’s Sports" executive order.
She told Fox News on Monday she was stunned to hear she received the offer.
"It's just such an incredible honor, and I'm so thankful, and I can't believe I'm getting invited. I know that President Trump really supports what we've been fighting for and what I've been advocating for for over two years now," she said. "And he's really big on getting men out of women's sports and out of their spaces.
TUNE IN: LIVE COVERAGE OF TRUMP'S ADDRESS TO CONGRESS TUESDAY NIGHT ON FOX NEWS
"So, I think this is just his way of letting us know that he sees us and he's with us, and I'm just so thankful for that."
On the play in question, McNabb said she suffered a concussion, brain bleed and permanent whiplash. Later, she said she dealt with partial paralysis and vision problems.
McNabb said she did not expect Trump to talk about her story, but it would be "insane" if he did.
"I know that he's addressing a lot of important things. So, I'm not going to assume anything. But if he does, then I'm going to be so thankful and just really, really happy."
Trump is expected to outline his domestic and foreign policy plans with the Department of Government Efficiency expected to play a big role in the speech.
Fox News’ Caroline McKee contributed to this report.
Ben Cleveland, an NFL offensive lineman who is set to hit free agency after playing for the Baltimore Ravens, filed for divorce from his wife, Kaitlyn Terrell Cleveland, according to court records in Georgia.
The NFL player filed for divorce in Baldwin County on Friday – more than two weeks after he was arrested on a DUI charge. He had a blood alcohol content of 0.178, more than twice the legal limit of 0.08, according to FOX 5 Atlanta.
Ben Cleveland said in the documents he was filing for divorce from his wife due to "adultery," TMZ Sports reported. There were no new filings since last week.
The two were married in July 2022 and separated in late December 2024, according to TMZ.
The Ravens selected Cleveland in the third round of the 2021 draft out of Georgia. He was a First-Team All-SEC selection with the Bulldogs and played 54 games for the Ravens.
He is set to hit free agency once the new league year begins next year.
Baltimore has been one of the best teams in the AFC since Lamar Jackson came into his own. Last year, the Ravens added running back Derrick Henry to the mix.
The Ravens were 12-5 but failed to reach the Super Bowl again following a 27-25 loss to the Buffalo Bills in the divisional round. The team was first in yards gained and third in points scored.
Rumors of the Philadelphia Eagles potentially skipping a White House visit to celebrate their Super Bowl LIX victory took social media by storm at the end of February.
The talk swirled even as the Eagles had yet to receive an official invite. President Donald Trump did finally invite the team to Washington, D.C., but the talk of them not going ignited a take from Basketball Hall of Famer Charles Barkley.
"The Round Mound of Rebound" said on "The Steam Room" that the possibility of teams skipping the White House visit because of Trump was "stupid."
"I don’t care who the president is," Barkley said, via Awful Announcing. "He’s the president of the United States. It’s bothered me the last 10 years, they’re like, ‘Well, I’m not going because this certain person is president.’ Dude, it’s the president of the United States.
"Even though I disagree with President Trump on some things, if I met him, I would still give him the respect and dignity he deserves. We can disagree, but it bothers me when these teams don’t want to go to the White House. I’m just disappointed … we got so divided. Where did we get to as a country when we’re like, ‘We’re not going to the White House, we don’t like who’s in there.’ That’s just stupid."
Tensions between the president and athletes appeared to simmer since he started his second term.
The Eagles skipped the White House visit during his presidency over tensions about players kneeling during the national anthem.
However, during the 2024 presidential election campaign, more athletes showed support for Trump against then-Vice President Kamala Harris.
Tennis legend Martina Navratilova had a fiery reaction on Monday night after no Senate Democrat voted in favor of the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act to break the filibuster.
The bill, led by Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., failed to receive the 60 votes it needed to get through the procedural vote. Republicans needed 60 votes but only received 51. No Democrats sided with Republicans on the bill. Two Democrats were absent from the vote, as were two Republicans. The bill failed, 51-45.
"I don’t either and I am mad as hell," she wrote on X.
The 18-time Grand Slam champion is a staunch Democrat but has been critical of her own party for failing to support efforts to keep biological males from competing against women and girls in sports.
When President Donald Trump signed the "No Men in Women’s Sports" executive order last month, she criticized Democrats for dropping the ball.
"I hate that the Democrats totally failed women and girls on this very clear issue of women’s sports being for females only," she wrote in a post on X.
She expressed her frustration in January when the House of Representatives passed the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act. Only two Democrats voted with Republicans on the bill.
"More Dems need to step up here. I know many who agree but are scared to speak up because of re-election. I say do the right thing. Grow a spine," she wrote on X.
The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act would require Title IX to treat gender as "recognized based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth" and would disallow any adjustment for it to apply to gender identity.
The Tuberville-backed bill had more than 40 co-sponsors in the Senate. It would also codify one of Trump's many recent executive orders, giving the policy better longevity.
Fox News’ Julia Johnson contributed to this report.
EXCLUSIVE:Riley Gaines has championed fairness in women's sports. Will it lead her to the campaign trail?
The former NCAA swimmer-turned-conservative activist has vowed to help unseat any Democrat who is enabling the inclusion of trans athletes in girls' and women's sports. That list added 45 senators to it on Monday night, after every Senate Democrat voted against the "Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act."
Gaines spent Monday in Minnesota, rallying supporters to advocate for a state bill aimed at protecting femal athletes from trans inclusion. However, that bill also failed to pass, falling short in the Minnesota House of Representatives.
After Gaines helped President Donald Trump and Republicans capitalize on national outrage over Democrats allowing trans inclusion in girls' sports, she now turns her attention to inflicting further consequences on the DNC in the 2026 midterms, as the party has seemingly refused to budge on the issue.
However, Gaines also is not ruling out the possibility of taking matters into her own hands, and eventually running for public office, she told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview last Friday.
"It's never what I saw myself doing," said Gaines, who majored in health sciences at the University of Kentucky and originally planned to pursue dentistry.
"But now, of course, with this issue and more, I would say the whole America-first agenda. I am just so passionate, I care so deeply, and I love it, so we'll see. It's definitely not something I would rule out. I don't think I'm that crazy yet, because I do think you have to be a bit clinically insane to voluntarily do that. But I do believe that maybe eventually influencing policy in that way is something I see myself doing."
Gaines said Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard would be her top role model in a potential political career.
"She's so fierce, and she is so strong, and what you see is what you get," Gaines said. "She stands firm for what she knows to be true, for what she knows to be right and righteous and moral and just. And I think we need more of that. We don't have a lot of that, it is a very rare trait, especially in the political sphere."
Gaines' political resume already includes three years of highly-visible activism in the space of protecting women's sports. This past week, a law named after her, "The Riley Gaines Act," passed in the Georgia House of Representatives, which seeks to ban trans athletes in girls' and women's sports in that state.
After campaigning for Trump and Republicans in 2024, Gaines has become a rapidly-ascending conservative counterculture figure, leading the popular "Gaines for Girls" OutKick podcast.
This past week, she also led a pre-race prayer at the NASCAR Cup Series’ EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix in Austin, Texas.
If and when Gaines does become crazy enough to throw her hat into the arena with her own political campaign, she already has the confidence of at least one prominent GOP figure.
Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., has worked closely with Gaines as a legislative ally in the battle to keep males out of women's and girls' sports. Blackburn was a co-sponsor of the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, and in total, has proposed three pieces of legislation to address the issue.
Blackburn, from working with Gaines on that issue, has confidence that the former swimmer and aspiring dentist could achieve anything she seeks to do.
"I think Riley has the ability to pursue whatever she wants to pursue," Blackburn previously told Fox News Digital. "She thought she would be a dentist, and life has taken some interesting turns, and I am so pleased to see the work that she's doing to protect women and girls."
Gaines has already been outspoken on issues beyond women's sports, taking a stance firmly in line with Trump and the Republican mainstream on issues like immigration and border security, U.S. relations with Ukraine and rolling back DEI. She has made these stances clear and consistent in her social media activity going back multiple years now.
However, for the time being, Gaines is focused on setting back the political careers of the Democrats who have voted to keep trans athletes in women's and girls' sports.
Immediately after Monday night's Senate vote, Gaines took to social media to call out the Democrats who voted against the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, and rally her supporters to oppose them. Gaines specifically pointed out Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga.
"You have a daughter. Have you no shame? Georgians are watching. I will make it my mission to do what I can to remove you from your senate seat in 2026," Gaines wrote over a photo that showed the names of every Democratic senator who voted against the bill.
Gaines previously told Fox News Digital that she is expecting the support of elected Republican officials, including Trump, in her efforts to unseat these senators. She also claims that some of the Democrats that she will look to unseat are already opposed to trans inclusion.
"In some of these private confidential conversations that I have had with several Democratic senators, they assure me that they know it's absurd to allow men into women's sports and that they wouldn't want it to happen to their daughters. But they hide behind many different excuses," Gaines said.
After those alleged Senators hid behind their excuses, they have officially made an adversary out of Gaines, and the DNC may even have to prepare for Gaines to be an adversary for many years to come.
Senate Democrats faced backlash on Monday after the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act failed to garner the votes it needed to break the filibuster.
Republicans needed 60 votes but only received 51. No Democrats sided with Republicans on the bill. Two Democrats were absent from the vote, as were two Republicans. The bill failed, 51-45.
The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act would require Title IX to treat gender as "recognized based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth" and would disallow any adjustment for it to apply to gender identity.
The bill was introduced by Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., and has more than 40 co-sponsors in the Senate. It would also codify one of Trump's many recent executive orders, giving the policy better longevity.
House Speaker Rep. Mike Johnson, R-La., and activists who have fought for fairness in women’s and girls’ sports were among those who ripped Senate Democrats over the lack of support for the bill. Two House Dems voted in favor of the bill in January.
"That is shocking. I cannot believe that the Democrats will not go along with common sense on this and the protection of women and girls," Johnson told Fox News.
Riley Gaines, Jennifer Sey and others weighed in on social media.
President Donald Trump issued an executive order last month to prohibit biological males from competing in women's and girls’ sports. The order would withhold federal funding from states that continue to have transgender inclusion in women's and girls’ sports.
The Tuberville-backed bill would have done the same.
Fox News’ Julia Johnson contributed to this report.
The Minnesota House failed to pass the "Preserving Girls’ Sports Act" weeks after President Donald Trump's executive order to ban biological males from competing in women's and girls sports.
HF12 needed 68 House votes for passage, but the bill fell one vote short with 67 affirmative votes to 66 negative votes.
The act stated that "only female students may participate in an elementary or secondary school level athletic team or sport that an educational institution has restricted to women and girls."
"Female means a female as biologically determined by genetics and defined with respect to an individual’s reproductive system," the bill mentions.
A rally of supporters and opponents was seen at the Capitol, as they awaited the final vote.
The Minnesota House had some "emotional discussion" before the bill was eventually voted on, and Republican state Rep. Peggy Scott, who sponsored the act, was among those who spoke.
"We cannot allow our girls to be vulnerable to losing their spot on the team, being on the podium, or to injury by a male teammate or male competitor," she said. "That is not safe and that is not fair to our girls."
"We have women and girls around the world that are so afraid of competing with biological men that they are dropping out of sports," Republican state Rep. Marion Rarick added in support of the bill, referencing a 2024 United Nations report on violence against women and girls.
However, opponents of the bill pointed to trans discrimination in their arguments.
"All children deserve to play," Democratic state Rep. Brion Curran, the Minnesota Queer Legislators Caucus chair, said. "We will not be complacent with this hateful and dangerous anti-trans rhetoric."
Democratic state Rep. Liish Kozlowski added that the act was "a bill to bully trans girls and non-binary kids."
While this heated debate was going on, the Senate voted on Monday on a bill banning trans athletes from competing in women’s sports. The bill didn’t get the 60 votes needed to go through, which means at least seven Democrats didn’t vote yes.
Trump’s executive order last month directed the Education Department to inform school systems, as well as colleges, that forcing girls and women to compete with transgender females is a violation of Title IX.
After the order was signed, the NCAA revised its own policy on trans athletes in women’s sports, though the revision has been seen as controversial by some.
Despite the executive order, the Minnesota State High School League announced it would continue letting trans athletes participate in girls’ sports, arguing that the Minnesota Human Rights Act and their state constitution deem them eligible.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, though, wrote a letter late last month warning of the consequences of not passing the "Preserving Girls’ Sports Act."
"The Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights has begun a Title IX investigation into the Minnesota State High School League," the letter from Bondi read. "If the Department of Education's investigation shows that relevant Minnesota entities are indeed denying girls an equal opportunity to participate in sports and athletic events by requiring them to compete against boys, the Department of Justice stands ready to take all appropriate action to enforce federal law."
State Democratic Rep. Leigh Finke said a trans athlete issue in the United States doesn’t exist.
"Minnesota has been inclusive for 10 years. We’ve had zero problems," Finke said. "But we are doing this for political reasons. And when you lie about a community for long enough, people will believe it."
Republican state Rep. Peggy Bennett saw it entirely differently.
"This bill is about fairness, safety and preserving girls sports in Minnesota."
If the bill were to have passed in the House on Monday, it still wouldn't have been signed by Gov. Tim Walz, a strong advocate for transgender rights who was expected to veto it.
Pat McAfee, who called Canada a "terrible country" during WWE’s Elimination Chamber event on Saturday night in Toronto, continued to sound off on the United States’ neighbor to the north on Monday.
McAfee publicly torched Canadians on Saturday night after the U.S. national anthem was booed — a common occurrence at sporting events recently following the "51st state" rhetoric by President Donald Trump.
"This is the most stacked Elimination Chamber that the WWE has ever had," McAfee said on the pay-per-view broadcast. "Kinda sucks that it’s in the terrible country of Canada that booed our national anthem to start this entire thing."
McAfee was ridiculed for his comments, stating on his "The Pat McAfee Show" that he saw "the terrible things that were said about me."
But that didn’t deter McAfee from explaining why he said what he said — and he still stands by it.
"Now, Canada, listen, there’s been some things said to me from Canadians that I guess I respect because of the passion that you have for your country — which I hope you understand that I was showing the same for mine," McAfee explained on the show. "You booed my country."
McAfee said that the Rogers Centre was very loud with its boos during the anthem.
"I understand, now, from the Canadians that they have a lot more passion for their country than I could have imagined. A lot of terrible things have been said about me, and I understand it," McAfee continued.
"I didn’t say Canadians were terrible. I said your country was. You booed us. I said you were terrible. Let’s shake hands and move along. I still love Canadians… I hope it gets settled."
McAfee also posted on X after seeing the backlash he was getting for his comments.
"I’m very proud and thankful that I’m from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the United States of America … Canadians have a lot of passion for their country and I understand it…You booed our country and I said you’re terrible.." McAfee wrote in his post.
The NHL’s 4 Nations Face-Off is where the boos were heard first, as Team USA faced Team Canada in Montreal after President Trump threatened heavy tariffs on goods from the country, as well as calling them the "51st state."
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also retorted, leading to a public feud that leaked into a hockey rivalry between fans and players alike.
EXCLUSIVE: WWE will launch podcasts ahead of WrestleMania 41 in Las Vegas as part of its expanded partnership with Fanatics, Fox News Digital learned on Monday.
Fanatics will be the primary partner of all upcoming WWE podcasts. The two companies already have global e-commerce, merchandise, trading cards and memorabilia deals since coming together in 2022.
The first podcast, "The Raw Recap Show," will launch on Tuesday morning to go over "Monday Night Raw." It will be hosted by Megan Morant and Sam Roberts as they react to the latest news and highlights from one of WWE’s premiere brands.
Morant and Roberts will also host an instant-reaction podcast following each premium live event, which will debut after WrestleMania 41. The podcasts will launch across all platforms, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts and iHeartRadio. New episodes will be available on WWE’s YouTube channel as well.
Fanatics will have key placement within each podcast, and the shows will have access to the company's events and roster of athletes.
WWE and Fanatics will team up for WWE World in Las Vegas for the second straight year. The event debuted in Philadelphia ahead of WrestleMania XL.
WWE also teased that some superstars and legends of the sport will also host future podcasts. Those shows will be announced at a later date.
The company is on the road to WrestleMania 41, which will be held at Allegiant Stadium on April 19 and 20.
The title picture for both the men’s and the women’s rosters got a little bit clearer on Saturday at the Elimination Chamber premium live event.
John Cena won the men’s Elimination Chamber match and will face Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Championship. Cena also made the stunning decision to turn on "The American Nightmare," sending shockwaves across the sports world.
Bianca Belair won the women’s Elimination Chamber match and will face either Rhea Ripley or Iyo Sky for the Women’s World Championship. Ripley will defend her title against Sky on "Monday Night Raw."
Jey Uso will face Gunther for the World Heavyweight Championship and Charlotte Flair will take on Tiffany Stratton for the WWE Women’s Championship. Uso and Flair won their respective Royal Rumble matches and chose which title they were going to go after.
EXCLUSIVE: WWE will launch podcasts ahead of WrestleMania 41 in Las Vegas as part of its expanded partnership with Fanatics, Fox News Digital learned on Monday.
Fanatics will be the primary partner of all upcoming WWE podcasts. The two companies already have global e-commerce, merchandise, trading cards and memorabilia deals since coming together in 2022.
The first podcast, "The Raw Recap Show," will launch on Monday night following "Monday Night Raw." It will be hosted by Megan Morant and Sam Roberts as they react to the latest news and highlights from one of WWE’s premiere brands.
Morant and Roberts will also host an instant-reaction podcast following each premium live event, which will debut after WrestleMania 41. The podcasts will launch across all platforms, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts and iHeartRadio. New episodes will be available on WWE’s YouTube channel as well.
Fanatics will have key placement within each podcast, and the shows will have access to the company's events and roster of athletes.
WWE and Fanatics will team up for WWE World in Las Vegas for the second straight year. The event debuted in Philadelphia ahead of WrestleMania XL.
WWE also teased that some superstars and legends of the sport will also host future podcasts. Those shows will be announced at a later date.
The company is on the road to WrestleMania 41, which will be held at Allegiant Stadium on April 19 and 20.
The title picture for both the men’s and the women’s rosters got a little bit clearer on Saturday at the Elimination Chamber premium live event.
John Cena won the men’s Elimination Chamber match and will face Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Championship. Cena also made the stunning decision to turn on "The American Nightmare," sending shockwaves across the sports world.
Bianca Belair won the women’s Elimination Chamber match and will face either Rhea Ripley or Iyo Sky for the Women’s World Championship. Ripley will defend her title against Sky on "Monday Night Raw."
Jey Uso will face Gunther for the World Heavyweight Championship and Charlotte Flair will take on Tiffany Stratton for the WWE Women’s Championship. Uso and Flair won their respective Royal Rumble matches and chose which title they were going to go after.
