‘Jeopardy!’ Host Ken Jennings Slams Gavin Newsom Over Trans Rights
Gavin Newsom might be a leading contender for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination, but one person who won’t be casting a vote for him is Jeopardy! host Ken Jennings.
Jennings made his point clear on Thursday (July 17) when he took to the social media platform Bluesky to slam Newsom’s stance on transgender children. The host was responding to a fellow user who wrote, “I will never, ever vote for Gavin Newsom. Ever, under any circumstances. I don’t care if he becomes the Dem nominee, he’s still not getting my vote.”
“This is correct,” Jennings replied. “Any candidate cynically ‘triangulating’ on trans kids is a non-starter, and now is the time to say so. There’s still so much time to advance candidates that DON’T suck.”
He followed up, “I think the only two governors who ever followed me on Twitter were Newsom and Spencer Cox, and I feel bad that I’m apparently such a good “craven doofus” follow.”
Newsom has faced backlash from the LGBTQ+ community in recent months for appearing on right-wing podcasts and feeding into the anti-trans talking points. This includes a recent appearance on the Shawn Ryan Show podcast, where the California Governor talked about trans athletes and trans children. Newsom has said that it’s “deeply unfair” for transgender athletes to compete in female sports.
Fans appreciated Jennings speaking out on the matter, with one Reddit user writing, “Thank you! It is all about the permission structures that we allow. It is time for us to be aggressively against bigotry. Remember fam, the abolishment of slavery, and the civil rights movements were both in their times wildly unpopular to the public. Sometimes it doesn’t matter what the majority thinks.”
“Not all heroes wear capes. He nailed it on the cynical part. Now I have the right word to explain my Newsom ick,” said another.
“Even the occasional craven doofus watches Jeopardy,” quipped another Bluesky user.
Another added, “I very much appreciate you for who you are, Ken, regardless of how you may be perceived. And that includes in both your professional and personal capacities. I bet a lot of people do. So thank you.”
“Thank you for remaining a real one,” said one commenter.
“I watch Jeopardy quite a bit but frankly knew nothing about Ken Jennings’ politics. Let’s just say this take is a welcome surprise,” another wrote.
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G
Newsom is right, genetic/biological males do not belong in women's sports. Any male who has gone through male puberty has an irreversible advantage over most females. It's not about testosterone levels. It's about skeletal geometry, bone length and density, muscles, heart/lung capacity, and the advantages of living and training in a male body. IRREVERSIBLE. Anyone who claims to be a feminist or to support women and girls must understand that continuing to allow biological/genetic males in female sports means the end of female sports - full stop. This isn't "anti-trans" it's "pro-female."
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P
I think this ignores the issues that matter. Republicans call people with mental health issues retarded… and then when their kids get beat by these retarded kids they call foul. We have some data from the military that absolutely supports your argument in the physical strength category without question. But for kids I want them to participate — and unless you tell me we have data associated with higher injury rates to other players or children on the field…. I don’t think the 9 athletes who are trans in the NCAA per congressional testimony should dictate our national policy. My kid is dunking on the maga kid, the scientist kid, the liberal snowflake kid and any binary or non binary kid out there…. That’s my attitude. The problem should be discussed in terms of “How do we include these kids…” not “How do we exclude these kids…”
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B
Trans women are literally banned from joining the military, which is of course nothing more than atrocious discrimination. Why would that be the best place to look for data on the physical capacities of trans women?
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B
If you think it's about skeletal geometry and bone length more than anything, why not make categories on those bases instead? Wrestling categories already exist along similar lines. That's much easier to regulate and less invasive to measure than biological sex. How can someone even prove or disprove what their testosterone levels years ago even were?
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Fact check: trans women who have transitioned hormonally are more similar on athletic tests to cis women than to cis men. Cis women have advantages over trans women in many categories, too. https://www.dw.com/en/do-trans-women-have-an-unfair-athletic-advantage/a-58583988
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B
If you were pro-female, wouldn't you be in favour of males transitioning to female with estrogen?
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K
He is only saying that now because he wants to run for president; otherwise, he would be saying what he always said. You can see right through his lies. He is now flipping his agenda so he gets more votes. Regardless after all he has done to destroy CA he is not worth a vote.
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L
KEN!!! Why would you choose to put your dog in this fight???!! I know you are Mormon and the Mormon doctrine, as well as Catholicism, continues to "evolve", whereas Christianity is the same yesterday, today, and forever. I also know that Jesus Love includes all; however, advocating for unbiblical practices is not hallowed ground, and this is not the platform to expound on the politics of LGBTQ+. I'm personally disappointed in Ken's choice to express his feelings on the issues. I WILL point out that his own statement, "Sometimes it doesn’t matter what the majority thinks.”, is a truth he should realize is just as appropriate coming from Gavin Newsom and his supporters! 💁🏽♀️ And, ironically, it reiterates the clear, biblical end of times prophetic warning to not be drawn away by worldly, trendy beliefs. There is Proverbs 29:11 that says, "A fool vents all his feelings, but a wise man quietly holds them back." 🤫
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G
Anybody who supports trans women (biological men) competing in the female division is a misogynist, full stop. Biological males have an irreversible advantage over women, if they have gone through male puberty. This is not about trans ideology, pro or con, this is about biological reality. Sport is binary for a very good reason. Women can't compete against men and win. When Serena and Venus Williams were in their prime, they said they could beat any man outside the top 200. The top 200? Serena and Venus, two of the best women ever to play tennis, didn't think they could beat the 200th ranked male tennis player in the world. In their prime! They ended up playing #207. He beat Serena 6-2 and Venus 6-1. So, anybody who thinks a male->female trans athlete should be allowed to compete as a female? You are basically saying, you think it would have been OK for Serena Williams to win ZERO grand slams rather than the 23 she actually won. What is wrong with this picture? So, Ken Jennings, you are wrong and Gavin Newsom is right. And as a never Trumper, it pains me to say this, but Trump is right as well. Although I suspect he's right for the wrong reason - his opinions are usually based in hate. But this issue isn't about hate, it's about fairness to women.
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G
Sorry he was ranked 203 not 207. And he beat Serena 6-1 and Venus 6-2, not the other way around. You can look it up - his name was Karsten Braasch. The sets were played at the Australian Open in 1998. Braasch was 30 and Venus and Serena were 17 and 16.
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O
Wasn't he smoking between sets too?
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That's called a composition fallacy. Trans women who haven't biologically transitioned with hormones aren't allowed to compete in the female category no one is advocating for that. And saying that trans women are biologically the same on average as cis men is like saying platypuses must not lay eggs because most mammals don't. It's a logical fallacy.
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O
My respect for Jennings increases exponentially the more he sticks his neck out with posts like these. It would be so easy for him to coast along apolitically. The fact that he is using his platform to challenge people cravenly choosing to demonize a vulnerable population is admirable.
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M
keep politics out of jeopardy please.
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K
Why??? They put politics on everything else like Oprah, the previous Joy Reid show, The View, CSNBC, ABC, CBS, The Oscars and the list goes on and on.. He did not say anything while on Jeopardy either it was his own personal view.
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G
Why does anybody care about Ken Jennings' political stances? Doing so is an ultimate waste of time and breath.
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O
I think that after playing Jeopardy and then becoming the host, Ken Jennings has met so many wonderful people that he has grown as a human being and Christian! I think that is his reason for speaking out.
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R
DNA cannot be changed period. If a sport is specific, like "women's" gymnastics, basketball, tennis, then male DNA dies not belong in the sport. And visa versa.
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G
Absolutely. And there's a solution to that. A simple cheek swab and a test for the SRY gene which is what 'turns on" male development and is only present in individuals with the Y chromosome, but is more specific than even the Y chromosome in detecting the male advantage. Anybody who doesn't have a functioning SRY gene can participate as a female. Anyone who does, who thinks they don't have the male advantage (there are cases such as Swyer Syndrome, or complete androgen insensitivity) ... can appeal and go through more in depth testing. This is non-invasive, discreet, economical, and FAIR - as long as everyone - EVERYONE - who wants to play in the female division is tested. No "she looks like a man so we'll test her." Newp - test everybody.
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What do you even mean by "male DNA?" Women inherit DNA from their father. And Y chromosomes are present in many women, e.g., women with Swyer Syndrome. women who have given birth to a boy, chimeras, etc. If anything, a Y chromosome genetically predisposes someone to the phenotype we call male like some genes genetically predispose someone to have cancer. It isn't determinative.
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O
Even wrestlers have categories….think about that…….
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R
Always was suspicious of Newsom as he was married to Kimberley G., Donald Jr.‘s girlfriend, for many years. Remember her screaming at the R convention?
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G
Shouldn't her marriage to Newsom make you suspicious of HER?
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P
Could Jennings be a bigger jerk ???
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G
He's always been an absolute jerk when it comes to politics. He tamped it down when he wanted the gig, but I knew he the smug entitled contestant couldn't hold out forever.
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