California Gov. Gavin Newsom has created controversy after describing transgender women competing in women’s sports as “unfair” on the Democrat’s new podcast.

The topic arose during an hourlong conversation with conservative activist and media personality Charlie Kirk, who has criticized transgender women (aka people born with male anatomy who identify as women) competing against cisgender women (aka people born with female anatomy who identify as women).

Kirk asked Newsom during the podcast if he would oppose transgender athlete’s participation in women’s sports.

“I think it’s an issue of fairness. I completely agree with you on that,” Newsom told Kirk. “It is an issue of fairness. It’s deeply unfair.”

Reaction was swift to Newsom’s comments, drawing criticism from LGBTQ+ groups and Newsom’s fellow Democrats.

Here’s what to know about Newsom’s comments about transgender women competing against cisgender women:

Newsom transgender comments: What exactly did Newsom say about transgender athletes?

During the hour-long “This is Gavin Newsom” podcast, Kirk asked Newsom what he thinks about a transgender woman potentially winning a state title in the long jump.

“I revere sports, so the issue of fairness is completely legit,” Newsom said. “And I saw that — the last couple years, boy, did I see how you guys were able to weaponize that issue at another level.”

Newsom also questioned during the podcast the practice of people announcing their preferred pronouns when introducing themselves.

How have LGBTQ+ rights groups reacted to Newsom’s transgender comments?

Equality California, the largest nonprofit civil rights organization that advocates for the rights of LGBT people in California, said the organization was “profoundly disappointed and angered” by Newsom’s comments on transgender women competing with cisgender women.

“Right now, transgender youth, their families, their doctors, and their teachers are facing unprecedented attacks from extremist politicians who want to eviscerate their civil rights and erase them from public life,” Equality California wrote in a press release. “In this moment of crisis, they need leaders who will unequivocally fight for them. Instead of standing strong, the Governor has added to the heartbreak and fear caused by the relentless barrage of hate from the Trump Administration.”

His comments also drew swift criticism from some in his party.

“WTF. Trans people and LGBTQ+ people are under attack. We don’t need our gov caving to conservative talking points that further hurt and scapegoat 1% of the population,” Assembly Member Alex Lee, D-San Jose, wrote in a post on the social media platform BlueSky.

Assemblymember Christopher M. Ward (D-San Diego), the chair of the California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus, said he was “profoundly sickened and frustrated” by Newsom’s remarks.

“This is an incredibly rare circumstance, where somebody who is transgender, and, by the way, is well enough and is able enough to be able to successfully compete in sports,” Ward told the Los Angeles Times. “So if this is what we want to spend 90% of our time focusing on, we are losing the sight of why people actually send us to Sacramento to work on California’s biggest pressing problems.”

What has President Donald Trump said about transgender athletes?

President Donald Trump sought to bar transgender student athletes from playing cisgender women’s sports and cut off federal money for schools that don’t comply. His executive order in February also could block transgender athletes from entering the country for the 2028 Olympics.

The order directs the Department of Education, which Trump wants to eliminate, to pursue “enforcement actions” under Title IX, the federal law prohibiting discrimination based on sex in educational institutions. Some legal experts question whether the Trump administration’s interpretation of the law would hold sway in court, though.

Trump said Secretary of State Marco Rubio also will be pressing Olympic organizers on transgender policies. The International Olympic Committee allows each sport’s governing body to set rules on transgender participation.

Days after the executive order was issued, three civil rights groups filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday seeking to overturn Trump’s moves. The National Urban League, the National Fair Housing Alliance and the AIDS Foundation of Chicago contend the administration is violating their rights to free speech and due process by engaging in intentional discrimination, according to the lawsuit filed by Legal Defense Fund and Lambda Legal.

“These orders are a blatant attempt to cement racial discrimination and other inequities at every level of society, with the goal of hoarding power and influence among the wealthy and among an extremist minority,” Janai Nelson, president of the Legal Defense Fund, told reporters at a Wednesday press conference.

Conservative political activist and culture warrior Charlie Kirk is widely known for his many, often intentionally, provocative statements.

In 2012, he emerged on the national stage at the age of 18 after co-founding the nonprofit Turning Point USA, which promotes conservative politics on high school and college campuses. Among its efforts is a watchlist aimed at “unmasking radical professors.” It also has a PAC called Turning Point Action.

In an episode of “The Charlie Kirk Show” from 2024, he called white people “the most hated class in America today” and said that “venom” against white people in contemporary society “feels like how we got to Auschwitz.”

He also said that he might assume a Black airline pilot is less qualified than a white pilot because of DEI initiatives.

Wired reported that he called Martin Luther King Jr. “awful” and “not a good person” at a Turning Point USA event in 2023.

In 2023, he said on “The Charlie Kirk Show” that only straight married couples should be allowed to adopt children.

The fact-checking nonprofit Politifact, run by the Poynter Institute, rated 86% of Kirk’s statements that it checked as at least “mostly false.”

Kirk, a strong Trump supporter, was given a prominent speaking spot at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee during last year’s election.

When did Gavin Newsom launch his podcast?

California Governor Gavin Newsom announced in February that he was launching “This is Gavin Newsom” to have conversations with President Trump’s supporters.

“We already know what our disagreements are with the MAGA movement. I want to understand what the motivations are, the legitimacy of those motivations, and just really understand where people are coming from,” Newsom told Politico. “They are influential — they are. They explain more things in more ways on more days about what’s going on and if we’re not trying to understand their motivations, we will be victims of their motivations.”

The Wednesday, March 5 episode with Charlie Kirk was the inaugural episode of “This is Gavin Newsom.”

It wasn’t clear when more “This is Gavin Newsom” podcast episodes would be posted, but in the launch announcement, Newsom said the goal was a 45-minute episode a week.

USA TODAY contributed to this article.