WASHINGTON — House Republicans on Thursday approved legislation that would bar transgender women and girls from participating in athletic programs designated for women, the latest effort in a nationwide push by conservatives to restrict transgender rights as they make culture issues a centerpiece of their political message.
The bill, approved entirely along party lines on a vote of 219 to 203, was the latest attempt by House Republicans to take up a potent social issue that has rallied their base and been championed at the state level by Republican lawmakers.
The bill has no chance of passing the Democratic-controlled Senate or being signed by President Biden. In a statement of administration policy, the White House said Mr. Biden would veto it if it made its way to his desk. A national ban that does not take into account competitiveness or grade level “targets people for who they are and therefore is discriminatory,” the White House said.
In debating the bill, Republicans sought to present themselves as the party of common sense fighting against an extreme agenda on the left.
“We’re in a battle for the very survival of women’s sports,” said Representative Aaron Bean, Republican of Florida, adding, “Not everybody has gone off the deep end.”
Representative John W….
