During a recent press conference held after the swearing-in of longtime ally Alina Habba as U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, former President Donald Trump found himself at the center of yet another culture war moment.
A reporter asked a now-familiar question that has stumped some Democrats in recent years: “What is a woman?”
The inquiry came after the reporter praised Trump’s record of elevating women into prominent roles within his administration, citing figures like Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, and Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Trump’s response initially drew laughter from the press corps.
“That’s an easy one,” he began, before offering a mix of flattery and generalizations. “A woman is somebody, they can have a baby under certain circumstances. She has equality. A woman is a person who is much smarter than a man I’ve always found. A woman is a person that doesn’t give a man even a chance of success.”
While the room laughed, Trump quickly shifted gears to more serious territory: the ongoing debate surrounding transgender athletes in women’s sports.
“A woman is a person that in many cases has been treated very badly,” Trump said. “What happens with this crazy issue of men being able to play in women’s sports is just ridiculous, very unfair to women, and very demeaning.”
Without naming names, Trump referenced a Democratic lawmaker who is actively pushing to protect transgender athletes’ participation in women’s sports. He then joked that Democrats continuing to defend such policies would ensure they “never win another election.”
Executive Orders Targeting Gender Identity
Throughout his administration, and continuing into his current campaign rhetoric, Trump has made fighting “gender ideology” a focal point. He signed two executive orders specifically aimed at transgender inclusion in federally supported institutions.
One of the orders, titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” restricts any educational institution receiving federal funding from allowing transgender athletes to compete in women’s sports.
Another executive order, “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” mandates that only two genders—male and female—be recognized across all federal agencies.
These moves have been criticized by civil rights groups and LGBTQ+ advocates as discriminatory, but remain popular talking points among conservative voters.
Trump concluded his response on a more sentimental note: “Women are, basically, incredible people, do so much for our country. And we love our women, and we’re going to take care of our women.”
His remarks encapsulate the dual nature of his political messaging—one that praises traditional gender roles while enforcing strict, binary definitions of sex and gender.
