A Senator’s Strange Notion of “Protection”

In an attempt to appear both for and against something at the same time—a remarkable feat of political acrobatics—Senator Catherine Cortez Masto has voted down the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act because it is too broad and might lead to young girls being subjected to the horror of sports physicals.

Now, one might assume a U.S. Senator would be aware that young boys across this great land already submit to such examinations before they can don a football helmet, step onto a wrestling mat, or swing a baseball bat. But in her wisdom, she has decided that such routine measures, which have existed since time immemorial, are somehow a monstrous overreach when applied to the fairer sex.

Meanwhile, she assures us she supports “fair play and safety,” though she defines these terms in a manner foreign to most. For all her talk of keeping politics out of local decisions, she seems to have overlooked the most glaringly obvious issue–if fairness and safety are indeed the priorities, then allowing biological males to compete against girls is about as sensible as inviting a cat to judge a mouse-catching contest.

The very purpose of the bill was to ensure that women’s sports remain for, well, women—a distinction that used to be so self-evident it needed no legislation. In short, the Senator has executed the rare trick of arguing against a measure by citing the problem it was to prevent.

A marvel indeed, though one suspects the young ladies forced to compete against stronger, faster opponents will find little amusement in it.