Trump Claims, ‘A Bad Judge Declared Sports Unconstitutional’

While hosting Olympic athletes at the White House on Thursday, President Donald Trump made the head-scratching claim that “a bad judge declared sports unconstitutional.”

The president hosted a celebration for athletes who competed for Team USA in the 2026 Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games in Milano Cortina, Italy, during which he unsurprisingly launched into an attack against transgender athletes.

“We’re doing everything we can to protect the cherished sporting traditions that have long been part of our nation from the beginning,” Trump said. “Already, we’ve done a lot to help save women’s sports, and we’re also saving college sports. We’re in the process of working very hard. We had a bad judge’s decision, and, uh, a judge that knew nothing about sports declared sports unconstitutional. Can you believe it?”

“We had to come and put something together,” the president continued. “We had the help of so many great people. They all came together. We have a bill, uh, right now that we’re trying to get passed, and if it does, we’ll be bringing sports back.”

While it’s not completely clear what decision Trump was referring to, on Thursday, Sens. Josh Hawley (R-MO), Jim Banks (R-IN), and Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) unveiled an amendment to the not-yet-passed Protect College Sports Act that would preserve state laws restricting transgender women from competing in women’s college athletics. The senators contend the underlying bill could otherwise supersede those laws, while supporters of the legislation say it’s meant to bring uniform national standards to college athletics.

In June, after the Supreme Court ruled to uphold bans on transgender athletes in girls’ sports in the states of West Virginia and Idaho, Trump celebrated on Truth Social, writing, “BIG WIN: The United States Supreme Court just RULED AGAINST MEN PLAYING IN WOMEN’S SPORTS. Wow! That takes that ridiculous situation off the table!!!”

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