WATCH: Kristi Noem goes on Tucker to defend why she won’t sign transgender sports bill [FULL INTERVIEW]

South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem was on with Tucker Carlson tonight to defend her refusal to sign the transgender sports bill as is, and she wasn’t happy with the way he characterized what has happened. At least two times in the interview she accused Tucker of being wrong.

Watch:

In Tucker’s first question to Noem, he notes that the NCAA, Chamber of Commerce and Amazon told her not to sign the bill and thus she changed her mind.

Noem responded with ‘that’s not true Tucker’, explaining that this bill would allow the NCAA to bully South Dakota and would prevent women from being able to participate in collegiate sports.

Tucker interrupted to ask how signing the bill now would stop women from playing in South Dakota, and Noem responded:

Because what it would do is it would put a law on the books that would allow the NCAA to take punitive action against our state. And we’re a small state Tucker, we’ve had to fight hard to get any tournaments to come to South Dakota. When they took punitive action against us, we would have to litigate and legal scholars that I have been consulting with for many, many months say that I would very likely lose those litigation efforts.

Tucker interrupted again: “So you’re saying the NCAA threatened you and you don’t think you can win that fight. They said if you sign this they won’t allow girls in South Dakota to play and you don’t think you can win in court, even though the public overwhelmingly supports you nationally, and so you’re caving to the NCAA. I think that’s what you’re saying.”

Noem didn’t like that last part about ‘caving’ and said:

Noooo, that’s not right at all Tucker. In fact you’re wrong, completely. I’ve been working on this issue for years. In fact several years ago I fought USDA to make sure 4H Rodeo could keep girl’s events, girl’s events, and boy’s events, boy’s events. So I’ve been working on this for many, many years. And back since November I’ve been consulting with legal scholars and professors across the country, asking them how I protect women’s sports. And they’ve gone through the steps to how I would legally challenge the NCAA and keep them from bullying the state of South Dakota and what they’ve told me to do is I need to build a coalition. So that’s why today defend TitleIXNow.com. That’s going to allow us to build a coalition of states that can fight the NCAA. Listen, I’m sick and tired of the NCAA threatening states, challenging us and bullying us. And so we’re going to build a coalition of leaders, athletes and people who want to protect women’s sports, who want to make sure that our women to keep Title IX in place to protect their right to be competitive and to be rewarded by participating in these team sports. And make sure this coalition can fight the NCAA to make sure we’re protecting Title IX.

Boy, that was a mouthful. Essentially she doesn’t want South Dakota to fight the NCAA in court alone, she wants a coalition of states to band together to make it more difficult for the NCAA to fight these states.

But Tucker wants to know why she doesn’t just call the bluff of the NCAA on excluding them from sports: Why not instead say ‘bring it on NCAA, I’m a national figure. Go ahead and try and exclude us. I will fight you in the court of public opinion and defend principle.’ Why not just do that?

Noem claimed that’s exactly what she’s doing with her coalition, but Tucker interrupted her saying she vetoed the bill and Noem responded:

I did not veto the bill. I did a style and form revision and asked the legislature to change it so that I can win. I’m not interested in participation a trophy; I’m not interested in picking a fight that we can’t win. I am a problem solver… I’ve been bullied for the last year by liberals Tucker. I’m not going to let anybody from the NCAA, from any big business – I’m not even going to let conservatives from the right bully me. I’m going to solve the problem. I’m going to make sure we’re building strength in numbers. We’re going after the NCAA and make sure that we’re keeping only girls playing in girl’s sports. I’ve been doing this for years and I’m going to solve the problem, not just pick a fight to pick a fight.

Tucker continued to challenge her on the current bill, a bill that rose through the Democratic process because her citizens want it, and Noem said this bill is a ‘trial lawyer’s dream’, suggesting that the bill would allow a child who doesn’t make a team to sue the team and school for up to a year from the decision to ensure they have an opportunity to play.

She also reiterated that if the legislatures keeps the collegiate portion in the bill, the state will get challenged from the NCAA and they will have to fight them in a court district that isn’t friendly to winning.

That’s pretty much the entire interview. What do you think? Do you buy what Noem is selling here about the coalition?


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