Trump Halts $175 Million Funding to UPenn Over Transgender Athlete Policy

Newsweek reported that the Trump administration withheld $175 million of federal funding for the University of Pennsylvania because it allowed trans women to participate in women’s sports.

The White House Communications team of Trump wrote on X: “Promises Made, Promises Kept.”

These funds are discretionary amounts of money from the Departments of Defense and Health and Human Services.

Senior officials in the administration have said that this is just “a taste” of future monetary actions against Penn for its policies.

Officials said that the university “is still at risk” of losing federal funding due to the Title IX probe into Penn’s decision to allow transgender swimmer Lia Thomas, to compete with the women’s swimming team and to use facilities meant for female athletes, like the locker room.

During his election campaign, Trump promised to ban trans women from participating in women’s sports.

Trump kept his promise and signed an executive order on February 5, “Keeping men out of women’s sports.”

The order states, “Many educational institutions and athletic organizations have allowed men to participate in women’s sports.”

“This is demeaning and unfair to women and girl athletes, and it denies them the opportunity to excel and participate in competitive sports.”

The order cited Title IX from the Education Amendments Act, of 1972 as its legal basis. The bill grants women equal opportunities to participate in sports at all educational institutions that receive federal funding.

The order states, “It is the policy and practice of the United States of America to withdraw all funds from programs which deprive girls and women of equal athletic opportunities. This results in the humiliation and silence of girls and women, as well as the exploitation of their privacy.”

It shall be the policy and practice of the United States, to oppose the participation of males in competitive women’s sports, more generally, for reasons of safety, justice, dignity, and truth.