{"id":23439,"date":"2026-07-31T19:12:35","date_gmt":"2026-07-31T14:12:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=23439"},"modified":"2026-07-31T19:12:35","modified_gmt":"2026-07-31T14:12:35","slug":"the-right-has-found-its-new-riley-gaines-in-the-wnba","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=23439","title":{"rendered":"The Right Has Found Its New Riley Gaines in the WNBA"},"content":{"rendered":"<script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n\r\n<br><div id=\"article-content\">\n            \n\n\n\n\n<p>The right-wing media machine is salivating over its newest anti-trans storyline, served up by Sophie Cunningham, a guard on the WNBA\u2019s Indiana Fever.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n<!-- \/wp:post-content -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Cunningham, long nicknamed \u201cMAGA barbie\u201d by W fans, has 3 million followers on TikTok and a predilection for reposting content starkly to the right of the famously progressive, activist league (she says her politics are \u201cvery much in the middle\u201d). She hasn\u2019t disavowed her adoption as a poster child by Republican officials, saying after the Trump White House used a meme of her taunting another player earlier this month: \u201cI think everyone around the world is posting it. Every company has done it. So I don\u2019t really think twice about it. I just think they\u2019re another group posting about it.\u201d<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>She propelled herself to MAGA cinematic universe main character status last week when she parroted an anti-trans talking point <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/wnba\/story\/_\/id\/49306657\/sophie-cunningham-finger-point-indiana-fever-wnba\" target=\"_blank\">to ESPN<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>\u201cI got a lot of negative feedback about me hating trans. And I\u2019m like, \u2018I never once said that,&#8217;\u201d she said. \u201cI think that I am here to extend love. But I also think with that love is truth, being honest. And I want to protect young girls in a locker room, or young girls in sport who shouldn\u2019t have to go against biological men.\u201d<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A rally was planned before the Fever\u2019s game in Seattle on Tuesday to \u201csupport\u201d Cunningham and two <a href=\"https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/news\/the-fight-over-trans-girls-sports-participation-moves-to-the-november-ballot\" target=\"_blank\">ballot initiatives<\/a> that would bar trans girls in Washington state elementary and middle schools from playing on girls\u2019 sports teams. The event reportedly drew only a couple dozen participants.\u00a0<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The real drama unfolded inside the arena, where two girls wearing shirts bearing XX divided from XY (in reference to chromosomes, sold by an athleticwear company that advocates for trans sports bans) and holding signs reading \u201cwe love you Sophie\u201d and \u201cthank you Sophie for speaking up for girls\u201d sat courtside. The girls, who said they are 16 years old in a post-game <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/BrandiKruse\/status\/2082500178226155685\" target=\"_blank\">interview<\/a> with anti-trans podcaster Brandi Kruse, were prominent in the television broadcast; Kruse said on Twitter that the seats cost $1,300 apiece and were paid for by \u201ca generous donor.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/video\/6402471671112\" target=\"_blank\">footage<\/a> gleefully run by Fox News, some fans heckled the girls and told them to leave. At some point in the game, Seattle Storm co-owner Celeste Keaton approached the two, who said she called them \u201cfucking insane\u201d and advised them to stop pulling stunts. On Thursday, the league confirmed to reporters that it was suspending Keaton from attending the next five home games and fining her an undisclosed amount. The Storm apologized in a statement, saying the team is \u201ccommitted to creating an inclusive environment where every fan is treated with respect.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Another anti-trans rally is being planned at the next Fever game in Portland on Friday, <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/JackThompsonFOX\/status\/2082834310034243767\" target=\"_blank\">per Fox News<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The right has glommed onto the W for its culture war battles in recent weeks, having just come down from an <a href=\"https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/the-weekender\/conspiracy-theories-around-lawmakers-health-are-going-to-keep-spiraling#1551962\" target=\"_blank\">outrage cycle<\/a> about a different Fever guard, Caitlin Clark, being fouled by the Phoenix Mercury\u2019s Alyssa Thomas, who is Black and in a relationship with another player.<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Cunningham, though significantly less prominent as an athlete than Clark \u2014 she typically comes off the bench for Indiana and averages around 23 minutes a game \u2014 is proving herself a more willing avatar. Clark attracts criticism for her often tepid responses to being weaponized by the right, but Cunningham isn\u2019t condemning it at all.\u00a0<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>\u201cI truly believe there is a safe space and love for EVERYBODY,\u201d she <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/sophaller\/status\/2082675804874604615?s=46\" target=\"_blank\">tweeted<\/a> Wednesday. \u201cBiological girls, biological boys, trans women, and trans men. Everyone is welcome at my table! You can disagree and still be kind. Bravo to those girls for standing up for what they believe. You\u2019ll be hearing from me soon\ud83d\udc95 yay for gifts. Truly embarrassing of the co-owner. Unfortunately shows the type of leader she is.\u201d<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Prominent right-wing figures, including the pioneer of the mediocre athlete-to-Fox News mainstay pipeline, registered their outrage.\u00a0<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>\u201cWomen are our own worst enemy. It\u2019s remarkable,\u201d former collegiate swimmer Riley Gaines <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Riley_Gaines_\/status\/2082549014600339797?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E2082549014600339797%7Ctwgr%5E273adb69e81daae02f742420bf4277a922ed5d97%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Foutkick-sports%2Fstorm-co-owner-suspended-incident-sophie-cunningham-fans-star-breaks-silence-controversy\" target=\"_blank\">tweeted<\/a> in response to a photo Kruse, the anti-trans podcaster, posted of women allegedly laughing after trying to trip the two teenagers.\u00a0<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t believe [Donald Trump] has reached out to her. I know he is following the story,\u201d White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said during her Thursday briefing. \u201cAs you know, this is something the president feels strongly about as well, and the American people do, too: that men should not be playing in women\u2019s sports.\u201d<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>\u201cThese young women are heroines,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/jk_rowling\/status\/2082552376603382197?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E2082552376603382197%7Ctwgr%5E273adb69e81daae02f742420bf4277a922ed5d97%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Foutkick-sports%2Fstorm-co-owner-suspended-incident-sophie-cunningham-fans-star-breaks-silence-controversy\" target=\"_blank\">posted<\/a> J.K. Rowling, the Harry Potter author-turned-anti-trans activist. \u201cThey\u2019re peacefully protesting against the grotesque unfairness of men playing in women\u2019s sport. The only people who are \u2018f*cking insane\u2019 here are those making a mockery of fair sport for women and trying to bully girls like this into silence.\u201d<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph --><!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The right typically feigns interest in women\u2019s sports \u2014 taking a brief pause from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nbcnews.com\/news\/us-news\/us-mens-hockey-players-regret-locker-room-laughter-trumps-joke-womens-rcna260825\" target=\"_blank\">demeaning<\/a> them, or seeking to <a href=\"https:\/\/nwlc.org\/why-im-scared-of-project-2025s-attacks-on-education-as-a-civil-rights-attorney-and-parent\/\" target=\"_blank\">weaken<\/a> Title IX \u2014 in one of two situations: when it can project its racial grievances onto Caitlin Clark, or when it can advance its anti-trans agenda.\u00a0<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>With Clark, the source is endlessly iterative, if providing stories with a fairly short shelf life: Any time she\u2019s fouled hard by a Black player, it creates video readymade for social media circulation.\u00a0<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Cunningham, though, may be offering them an even more profitable font of news cycles. She\u2019s comfortable with celebrity, hosting a pop culture podcast with reality TV star West Wilson, providing analysis of WNBA games for USA Sports, having posed for Sports Illustrated and performing as a ring girl at a recent UFC fight. As long as anti-trans agitators are sent to WNBA games, there will inevitably be pushback; the mostly Black, prominently gay league is considered a safe environment for its many LGBTQ+ fans and each team celebrates pride nights.\u00a0<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Combine the narrative of a telegenic white player\u2019s trials as a brave and lonely anti-trans crusader with easy-to-get footage of fans yelling at calculatedly young women advocating for the same cause. It\u2019s a Fox News (Fever) dream.\u00a0<\/p>\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->          <\/div><script type=\"text\/javascript\">\n    window.fbAsyncInit = function() {\n      FB.init({\n        appId: \"101800829865996\",\n        xfbml: true,\n        version: ' v2.6'\n      });\n      window.fbAsyncInit.__didInit = true;\n    };\n    (function(d, s, id) {\n      var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];\n      if (d.getElementById(id)) {\n        return;\n      }\n      js = d.createElement(s);\n      js.id = id;\n      js.src = \"https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/sdk.js\";\n      fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);\n    }(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));\n  <\/script>\r\n<br><script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The right-wing media machine is salivating over its newest anti-trans storyline, served up by Sophie Cunningham, a guard on the WNBA\u2019s Indiana Fever.\u00a0 Cunningham, long nicknamed \u201cMAGA barbie\u201d by W fans, has 3 million followers on TikTok and a predilection for reposting content starkly to the right of the famously progressive, activist league (she says&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":23440,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/talkingpointsmemo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2287242641.jpg?w=1200","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23439","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-political-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23439","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=23439"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23439\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/23440"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=23439"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=23439"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=23439"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}