Politics

Speaker Johnson State Of The Union Invitees Include Riley Gaines, Chloe Cole

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House Speaker Mike Johnson’s invitees to Thursday’s State of the Union address by President Joe Biden include two women who have clashed with transgender activists to promote women’s sports and oppose child sex changes.

Johnson announced his list of invitees in a Thursday release, many of whom reflect GOP criticisms of Biden’s policies on the border, the Middle East, crime, China, the fentanyl crisis and energy policy. Riley Gaines, a former NCAA swimmer who competed against Lia Thomas as a member of the University of Kentucky’s swim team during the 2022 NCAA Championships, and Chloe Cole, a prominent “detransitioner” who has spoken out against child sex changes, were among them.

“There will be a wide chasm between the picture of America President Biden attempts to paint tonight and the reality our country is facing. Three years of his administration’s failed policies have opened our borders, jeopardized our safety, reduced our standard of living, and weakened our standing on the world stage,” Johnson said in the release.

Gaines was assaulted after speaking on the issue of women’s sports at an April 6, 2023 event at San Francisco State University hosted by Turning Point USA. The Biden administration proposed new regulations involving Title IX in April 2023 that would prohibit states from barring biological males from competing in women’s sports.

Cole has spoken out about her experiences after she started sex-change procedures at age 13 in testimony in front of legislative bodies and speeches at events across the country. She also sued medical providers who carried out the sex-change procedures she underwent as a child.

“Thank you so much for the invitation to The State of The Union Address tonight @SpeakerJohnson,” Cole posted on X. “Truly an honor!”

Johnson’s other invitees are Ella Milman and Mikhail Gershkovich, NYPD Lieutenant Ben Kurian & NYPD Officer Zunxu Tian, Darin Hoover and Alicia Lopez, Orna and Daniel Neutra, former Hamas hostage Mia Schem, Kristina Gill, Capitol Hill Pregnancy Center executtive director Janet Durig, Tammy Nobles, Stefanie Turner, Ketsia, Miriam, and Caleb Corbett, MIT graduate student Talia Khan, former NBA star Enes Freedom, Dr. Wayne D. Lewis, Jr., Jonathan Wheelis and Pastor John Fream of Cypress Baptist Church in Benton, Louisiana.