United States President Donald Trump clashed with Maine Governor Janet Mills at the White House on Friday as his recent passing of the executive order, ruling transgender athletes out of the women’s sport was not followed by the state.
In a bipartisan governors’ group meeting, Trump brought Maine’s opposition to his order, questioning whether the state would comply.
“Is Maine here? The governor of Maine?” he asked.
“Yeah,” Mills responded. “I’m here.”
When Trump pressed her about compliance, she replied, “I’m complying with the state and federal laws.” The US President fired back, asserting, “We are the federal law. You better do it, or you’re not getting any federal funding,” issuing a warning by saying, “You better comply…otherwise, you’re not getting any federal funding.”
Mills fired back, saying, “See you in court.”
To this, Trump responded by saying, “Good. I’ll see you in court. That should be a real easy one. And enjoy your life after governor, because I don’t think you’ll be in elected politics.”
The US President also highlighted that the NCAA updated its policy after he declared the ‘war on women’s sports over’.
The order gives federal agencies latitude to withhold federal funding from athletes that do not abide by Tile IX in alignment with the Trump administration’s view, interpreting sex as something assigned at birth.
“We strongly believe that clear, consistent, and uniform eligibility standards would best serve today’s student-athletes instead of a patchwork of conflicting state laws and court decisions,” NCAA president Charlie Baker said.
“To that end, President Trump’s order provides a clear, national standard.”
The NCAA policy updated immediately and applies to all athletes from the forthcoming events.
The NCAA holds 1,100 member schools and more than 500,000 athletes, creating the largest governing body for college athletics in the U.S.
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