California Governor Gavin Newsom’s office is facing backlash after sharing a WWE wrestling clip in an attempt to ridicule Education Secretary Linda McMahon, who recently warned that states failing to uphold Title IX protections for female athletes could lose federal education funding, as reported by the Gateway Pundit.
McMahon, who appeared in an interview with Fox News earlier in the week, addressed the growing concern over men participating in women’s sports. She shared a segment of the interview on X, tagging Newsom and stating:
“Letting men beat women in their sport of choice is illegal and wrong. You can either stand up for women or answer to the law.”
Today, @usedgov let @GavinNewsom know his state’s policies are in violation of Title IX several times over. Letting men beat women in their sport of choice is illegal and wrong.
You can either stand up for women or answer to the law. pic.twitter.com/96eMOT6huo
— Secretary Linda McMahon (@EDSecMcMahon) June 25, 2025
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In response, Newsom’s official account posted a GIF from 2003 showing McMahon’s former WWE character being body-slammed by professional wrestler Glenn Jacobs, better known as “Kane,” who is now the Republican mayor of Knox County, Tennessee.
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The governor’s team captioned the clip: “Live look at Linda’s legal claims.”
Live look at Linda’s legal claims https://t.co/0dwc3kvaIe pic.twitter.com/eQkBVowNrN
— Governor Newsom Press Office (@GovPressOffice) June 25, 2025
Newsom’s office followed up with another post, writing: “Secretary McMahon is confusing government with her WrestleMania days — dramatic, fake, and completely divorced from reality. This won’t stick.”
Secretary McMahon is confusing government with her WrestleMania days — dramatic, fake, and completely divorced from reality. This won’t stick. https://t.co/H5UqMPuArE
— Governor Newsom Press Office (@GovPressOffice) June 25, 2025
McMahon responded directly in a Fox News interview Wednesday, calling out the governor’s office for dismissing a serious issue. “I think what that said is that Gavin Newsom doesn’t really take this seriously at all,” she said. “He was trying to be funny on a very serious matter.”
McMahon added that real consequences are already being felt by young women across the country.
“We have women who are training to compete in these sports who lose scholarship and sponsorship opportunities, who get injured, who are compelled to be in dressing rooms or their intimate spaces with men, and that is absolutely unfair.”
McMahon also pointed to previous comments from Newsom himself, referencing an appearance on The Charlie Kirk Show earlier this year in which Newsom admitted the playing field is not equal when men compete against women in sports.

McMahon, the former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment and a vocal advocate for protecting women’s spaces, currently serves as Secretary of Education under President Donald Trump.
She has led the administration’s effort to counter Biden-era policies that redefine gender and impact women’s sports, scholarships, and privacy.
The video posted by Newsom’s team quickly drew criticism from both sides of the political aisle, with some observers noting the irony of using a clip of a man violently slamming a woman to the ground to dismiss concerns about male participation in women’s athletics.

McMahon has made clear she will continue pushing forward on Title IX enforcement. “I stand with women and girls,” she stated.
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