White House accuses Noem of 'attacking LGBT youth' by signing women's sports law

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Gov. Noem signs bill banning transgender participation in girls' and women's sports

Jesse Watters and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem discuss the bill banning transgender female athletes from participating in girls' or women's school sports on 'Jesse Watters Primetime.'

White House deputy press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre lashed out at Republican South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem over a new law in the state, claiming she advanced "policies that attack trans youth" and funded "ads attacking LGBT youth" 

NOEM SIGNS BILL BANNING TRANSGENDER PARTICIPATION IN GIRLS' SPORTS

White House deputy press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre speaks at a press briefing at the White House in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 4, 2021. ((AP Photo/Andrew Harnik))

Jean-Pierre's remarks came in a tweet from her official White House account and linked to footage of Noem being questioned about statistics which show LGBTQ youth in the South Dakota being diagnosed with anxiety or depression.

"Here’s a start for you, Governor," Jean-Pierre wrote in a tweet from her official account. "1. Don’t advance policies that attack trans youth, 2. Don’t fund ads attacking LGBT youth, 3. support @POTUS’ agenda to enhance support for youth mental health needs, with funding made available through the American Rescue Plan."

Noem responded to Jean-Pierre and touted the state's handling of mental health. In highlighting the "failures" of President Biden, Noem questioned whether the White House spokeswoman would "care to take some lessons" from South Dakota.

"We believe in fairness in SD and are ranked #1 in mental health by US News," Noem wrote. "Care to comment on the numerous failures of your boss @JoeBiden? Inflation. Constant foreign policy failures. Stagnant job market. Fauci fatigue. Gas prices. Care to take some lessons from our leadership?"

Earlier this month, Noem signed into law a bill to ban transgender female athletes from participating in girls' or women's school sports.

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem addresses the Conservative Political Action Conference held in the Hyatt Regency on February 27, 2021, in Orlando, Florida. ( Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

"This bill's about fairness," the Republican said after she signed Senate Bill 46. "It's about allowing biological females… to compete fairly on a level playing field that gives them opportunities for success."

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Noem positioned her signing of the bill as a defense of Title IX, federal civil rights law that prohibits discrimination in school and education programs on the basis of sex.

Last year, Noem vetoed similar legislation, sending it back to the legislature with requests to change provisions related to college sports, which she said would be unworkable for organizations that compete on a national level.

Noem speaks during the Family Leadership Summit on July 16, 2021, in Des Moines, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)

Noem defended her actions in January, saying she "did not veto a bill."

"What I did was, I asked my legislature for changes, and they rejected it," Noem said. "So immediately that very same day I put executive orders in place to protect girls’ sports."

Opponents of last year's bill argued that it could open the state up to lawsuits from the NCAA, jeopardizing the state's ability to hold nationally sanctioned events.

Fox News' Michael Lee and Andrew Murray contributed to this article.