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Transgender cyclist Emily Bridges says she was ‘harassed and demonised’ after exclusion from national championships | CNN

Published

3 years ago

April 5, 2022

Transgender cyclist Emily Bridges says she was ‘harassed and demonised’ after exclusion from national championships | CNN

CNN
—

A transgender bike owner says she has been “harassed and demonised” by the media after the UCI, world biking’s governing physique, dominated she couldn’t compete on the Nationwide Omnium Championships in the UK over the weekend.

Emily Bridges, who was set to race in opposition to British Olympic stars akin to Laura Kenny within the occasion, stated she came upon by way of British Biking on Wednesday that the UCI had dominated she was ineligible.

The 21-year-old stated in an announcement she has been involved with British Biking and the UCI for the previous six months forward of what was purported to be her first race in a girls’s occasion.

“In that point, I’ve offered each British Biking and the UCI with medical proof that I meet the eligibility standards for transgender feminine cyclists, together with that my testosterone restrict has been far beneath the restrict prescribed by the laws for the final 12 months,” Bridges stated in her assertion, which was posted by LGBTQIA+ biking group PRiDE OUT.

As of March 1 2020, UCI laws state that transgender girls should cut back their testosterone ranges to beneath 5 nmol/L for no less than 12 months with a view to compete in girls’s occasions.

The UCI didn’t instantly reply to CNN’s request for remark. CNN has reached out to Bridges immediately however is but to listen to again.

Nevertheless, the Guardian reported the UCI prevented Bridges from competing as a result of it stated she was nonetheless registered as a male bike owner and due to this fact ineligible to compete as a feminine till her male UCI identification expired.

“I’m an athlete, and I simply wish to race competitively once more,” Bridges’ assertion continued. “Nobody ought to have to decide on between being who they’re, and taking part within the sport that they love….

“As isn’t any shock with many of the British media, I’ve been relentlessly harassed and demonised by those that have a selected agenda to push. They assault something that isn’t the norm and print no matter is most probably to outcome within the highest engagement for his or her articles, and herald promoting.

“That is with out look after the wellbeing of people or marginalised teams, and others are left to select up the items as a result of their actions.”

Bridges initially posted the assertion on her Instagram account, however has since made the account personal.

On Wednesday, British Biking launched an announcement calling for a coalition to handle transgender and non-binary participation in sport. Whereas British Biking stated they “acknowledge” the UCI’s resolution, in addition they “absolutely recognise” Bridges’ disappointment with the result.

“Transgender and non-binary inclusion is greater than one race and one athlete – it’s a problem for all elite sports activities,” the assertion learn.

“We consider all individuals inside our sport deserve extra readability and understanding round participation in elite competitions and we’ll proceed to work with the UCI on each Emily’s case and the broader scenario as regards to this challenge.

“We additionally perceive that in elite sports activities the idea of equity is crucial. For that reason, British Biking is immediately calling for a coalition to share, study and perceive extra about how we are able to obtain equity in a approach that maintains the dignity and respect of all athletes.

“Throughout sports activities, way more must be achieved, collectively, earlier than any long-term conclusions will be drawn.”

Among the many feminine athletes to specific opposition to Bridges’ inclusion within the occasion was British 800m runner Ellie Baker, who labeled the unique resolution as “ridiculous.”

“How this has been allowed to occur is simply ridiculous,” she wrote on Twitter. “I’d refuse to race and hope that the opposite girls would stand with me on this too. That is completely unfair. The benefits a trans girls has had from going by way of puberty as a boy to a person can by no means been undone.”

Fellow athletes Seren-Bundy Davies and Jessie Knight had been amongst these to specific assist for Baker’s put up, in addition to former British swimmer Sharron Davies.

Within the velodrome, 19-year-old Sophie Lewis gained the title on the Nationwide Omnium Championships.

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News

Trump Will Strip Protections from Career Civil Servants, Miller Says

Published

5 hours ago

January 19, 2025

Press Room

Trump Will Strip Protections from Career Civil Servants, Miller Says

President-elect Donald J. Trump is planning a string of executive orders during his first days in office, including one to strip job protections from career civil servants, his top policy adviser told Republican members of Congress on Sunday, according to two people briefed on the matter.

In a phone call with a few dozen Republicans on Sunday, Stephen Miller, Mr. Trump’s incoming homeland security adviser and deputy White House chief of staff overseeing policy, laid out the broad strokes of what Mr. Trump is planning on energy, immigration and federal workers. The call was reported earlier by the website Punchbowl and confirmed by two people briefed on the conversation.

A Trump spokesman did not respond to an email seeking comment.

Mr. Trump has indicated he plans to sign roughly 100 executive orders in the initial days of his presidency, with a number coming within hours of his being sworn in on Monday.

Among them are substantial actions to reshape the federal bureaucracy’s workplace rules, which are in line with various promises that Mr. Trump made on the campaign trail.

Mr. Miller described, while providing little detail, executive orders to undo actions taken by President Biden to institute “diversity, equity and inclusion” measures in federal agencies, and to roll back protections for transgender people receiving some government services.

Mr. Trump also plans to reinstate an order he issued during his first term to create a new category of federal workers, known as Schedule F, that would lack the same job protections enjoyed by career civil servants, who are supposed to be hired according to merit and cannot be arbitrarily fired. That would allow his administration to shift large numbers of federal workers into a new status over which it could keep a much tighter rein, including the ability to hire and fire them more easily. The order is significant as Mr. Trump and Mr. Miller have a deep hostility toward large portions of the federal bureaucracy, which the president-elect often derisively calls the “deep state.”

Mr. Trump is also planning a string of orders related to energy policy, much of which arise from pledges to encourage offshore drilling and end the electric vehicle tax credit, as well as stop spending on Mr. Biden’s climate policies.

And on immigration, as The New York Times has reported, Mr. Trump is planning to designate drug cartels as “foreign terrorist organizations”; declare a border emergency to allow him to go around Congress and surge money and potentially military resources to the border; and declare a public health emergency to essentially seal the border as the administration did during the coronavirus pandemic. He also is expected to curtail asylum grants and step up detentions and deportations.

Mr. Miller has been leading the executive order process throughout the transition, aiming for as much secrecy as possible and only opening the aperture internally as time went on so that various agency heads could see some of the work. He has been using a team of lawyers to vet them.

At his rally at the Capital One Arena on Sunday afternoon, Mr. Trump told the crowd that the executive orders would make them “extremely happy.”

He said he had beaten back efforts by some advisers to delay his Day 1 executive orders, saying he wants to give the country a massive first day and first week in office filled with activity.

Mr. Trump also said he plans to quickly release the classified files related to the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr.

And he previewed coming clemency grants for people convicted in connection with the attack on the Capitol by a pro-Trump mob on Jan. 6, 2021. He referred to them as “hostages,” as he has throughout the campaign.

News

Donald Trump vows to end ‘American decline’ at inauguration eve rally

Published

6 hours ago

January 19, 2025

Press Room

Donald Trump vows to end ‘American decline’ at inauguration eve rally

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Donald Trump promised to act with “historic speed and strength” to end “American decline” as he addressed a jubilant crowd of supporters in Washington on the eve of his return to the White House.

“Tomorrow at noon, the curtain closes on four long years of American decline, and we begin a brand new day of American strength and prosperity, dignity and pride,” Trump told the thousands gathered in the city’s Capital One Arena. “I will act with historic speed and strength and fix every crisis facing our country.”

The speech marked Trump’s first time addressing a crowd in Washington since the January 6 riots of 2021, when his supporters stormed the Capitol building in a failed bid to overturn Joe Biden’s election as president.

It reprised many of the dark campaign themes that won him a second term in office, touching on open borders, rampant crime and radical-left indoctrination, as well as foreshadowing a flurry of executive orders following his inauguration on Monday.

“Every radical and foolish executive order of the Biden administration will be repealed within hours of when I take office,” Trump promised to cheers.

He pledged executive orders to deport immigrants, deregulate oil and gas production, pardon January 6 rioters, restrict transgender athletes’ involvement in sports and roll back diversity initiatives.

Trump also promised to declassify records on the assassinations of John F Kennedy, his brother Robert and civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.

In contrast to the events of four years ago, the mood among the Maga faithful on Sunday was jubilant as they braced for what they hoped would be sweeping change in America during Trump’s second term.

“I was very impressed with the plans that he has, especially that he wants to sign 100 executive orders on the first day,” said Elizabeth Nottingham, a 59-year-old energy consultant who had flown from Oklahoma to Washington. “I think that’s going to be very important.”

She said the speech reinforced her optimism that Trump’s return to the White House would be a boon for ordinary Americans. “We’re not the top 1 per cent in society. We’re small business owners . . . and so now I feel confident that President Donald Trump will keep those taxes low and do things necessary to help the economy,” she said.

Anthony Tellier said he believed Donald Trump would bring ‘more open discourse’ © Myles McCormick/FT

Portrait of Elizabeth Nottingham standing inside the Capital One Arena — Elizabeth Nottingham said she was optimistic about Trump’s plans for small business owners © Myles McCormick/FT

Nottingham was among thousands of Trump supporters who had travelled from across the county, braving sleet, snow and freezing temperatures in the US capital, to attend Sunday’s “victory rally”.

“I’m here to see something historic,” said Anthony Tellier, a 24-year-old student from Long Island who said freedom of speech had been curtailed under Biden’s presidency. “My biggest problem over the last four years . . . is if you say anything that even leans slightly to the right, you’re looked at as a pariah. Trump will bring a more open discourse.”

In a wide-ranging speech typical of his campaign rallies, Trump took credit for restoring TikTok, freeing Israeli hostages in Gaza and bolstering the stock market before even taking office.

He also said Apple chief Tim Cook had told him on Sunday the tech group would make a “massive investment in the United States” as a result of his victory.

“We’ve achieved more without being president than they achieved in four years with being president,” Trump told the crowd. “Just imagine all of the good things that we’ll accomplish together with four more years in the White House.”

Many had spent hours queueing outside the hockey and basketball stadium as vendors sold Maga merchandise and Trump paraphernalia.

“I’m here to make America great again and do my part,” said Andrew Gardiner, a 44-year-old defence contractor from New Braunfels, Texas. “I think we’re made of good stuff and I think we have something to stand for. And we don’t need to feel bad for ourselves. We need to be proud and strong and good.”

Ahead of Trump’s address, musician Kid Rock, Ultimate Fighting Championship chief Dana White and actor Jon Voight were among the celebrities who fired up the crowd, many of whom were wearing red “Make America Great Again” baseball caps.

Alice Turner from Alexandria, Virginia, said she had signed up to volunteer at the event to “give back” to the president and hoped he would quickly roll out his agenda on everything from immigration to the economy.

“I’m just looking for justice. I’m looking for the border to be closed, better security and the J-Sixers to get out,” she said, referring to the January 6 rioters. “I’m just very hopeful.”

News

Vivek Ramaswamy expected to exit DOGE, leaving Elon Musk at the helm: Here’s why

Published

6 hours ago

January 19, 2025

Press Room

Vivek Ramaswamy expected to exit DOGE, leaving Elon Musk at the helm: Here’s why

Vivek Ramaswamy, co-leader of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) alongside Elon Musk, is reportedly considering stepping down from the role. The reason is believed to be his plans to launch a campaign for Ohio governor, leaving Musk to lead the Trump-backed initiative aimed at streamlining federal bureaucracy. The departure comes amid reported tensions within DOGE and criticism of Ramaswamy’s involvement in the project.

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson walks with Vivek Ramaswamy and Elon Musk, who is carrying his son X Æ A-Xii, as they walk to a meeting to discuss President-elect Donald Trump’s planned Department of Government Efficiency, on Capitol Hill in Washington, (AP)

Vivek Ramaswamy exiting DOGE?

Regarding his exit from DOGE, CBS News has confirmed through multiple sources that the American entrepreneur and politician, who ran against Trump in the 2024 presidential elections before ultimately supporting him after withdrawing from his campaign, plans to announce his Ohio gubernatorial campaign as soon as the end of January.

Tensions have reportedly arisen between Ramaswamy and the DOGE staff, leading to subtle suggestions for his exit. “Vivek has worn out his welcome,” one person close to Trump told CBS.

Also read: Indian-origin Vivek Ramaswamy reacts to parody account announcing his candidacy for Ohio governor: ‘Not a…’

Vice President-elect JD Vance has left his U.S. Senate seat in Ohio. To fill the vacancy, Governor Mike DeWine appointed Lieutenant Governor Jon Husted to the Senate seat, which will require a special election in November 2026. Since Husted has moved to the Senate, the role of lieutenant governor is now open. No comments from Ramaswamy have been made yet.

A meeting without Musk

Politico reports, on Saturday, Vivek Ramaswamy attended an all-hands meeting for the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) at the SpaceX headquarters in Washington, according to sources familiar with the department’s operations. Notably, Elon Musk, Ramaswamy’s co-leader in the initiative, was absent from the meeting.

Also read: Donald Trump dances with village people at DC victory rally before inauguration: Watch

The division of labor between Musk and Ramaswamy has been clear, according to insiders. While Musk handles the overarching vision for DOGE, Ramaswamy focuses on deregulation. The rest of the team is responsible for implementing the strategies. Behind the scenes, some in Trump’s circle view Ramaswamy’s budding gubernatorial campaign as a convenient way to streamline Musk’s leadership within DOGE.

The Department of Government Efficiency is not a formal federal agency. Instead, it serves as an advisory body working with the White House and the Office of Management and Budget to provide recommendations on reducing bureaucracy and improving efficiency.