Maine Democrats trying to amend state constitution to codify allowing trans athletes in girls' sports

Maine School Administrative District 70 Superintendent Tyler Putnam discusses how the Trump administration is suing Maine over allowing transgender athletes to compete in girls' sports on ‘Fox & Friends.’

The Democrat majority in the Maine House of Representatives voted to pass a bill that would codify the Maine Human Rights Act (MHRA) in the state's constitution on Thursday. 

The MHRA has been the state's tent pole legislation in allowing trans athletes in girls' sports during an ongoing feud with President Donald Trump's administration over the issue. 

The law was amended four years ago to add gender identity as a protected class and specifically stated that denying a person an equal opportunity to participate in sports is discrimination against education. Last year, the Maine Principals’ Association updated its policy to allow athletes to compete against the gender they identify as.

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The proposed bill to constitutionalize the MHRA passed with a slim simple majority in the House on Thursday but will need a two-thirds majority in both chambers before it can go before voters.

Meanwhile, the Republican minority in the House is backing a proposal to remove the term "gender identity" from the MHRA. 

The vote came one day after the U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the state for its ongoing defiance of Trump's "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports" executive order. Maine has faced immense federal pressure in the last two months over its refusal to comply, including two federal investigations, a funding freeze by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and now an official lawsuit. 

But the Democrat leadership in the state, led by Governor Janet Mills, has remained