Democratic lawmakers say defining a woman is a ‘complicated question’

EXCLUSIVE: Democratic lawmakers would not provide a definition of a woman when pressed on Capitol Hill, as President prioritizes making clear distinctions between biological sexes during his second term.

America Rising, a Republican research organization, asked lawmakers in Washington, D.C., to provide a definition of a woman ahead of Women’s History Month in March, but received no clear answers.

“It is a more complicated question than one might know,” Rep. Herb Conaway, D-N,J,, said when asked to define what a woman is.

More than 10 entirely avoided answering the question.

Democrats were unable to provide a definition for what a woman is when asked by America Rising. (America Rising)

Those who did not respond included Reps. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., John Mannion, D-N.Y., Eric Sorensen, D-Ill., Delia Ramirez, D-Ill., Don Beyer, D-Va., Jason Crow, D-Colo., Derek Tran, D-Calif., Bobby Scott, D-Va., George Whitesides, D-Calif., Eugene Vindman, D-Va., and Andrea Salinas, D-Ore.

“I don’t understand what you mean,” Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet, D-Mich., responded to the question.

Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., a progressive member of “the Squad,” responded to the interviewee by asking, “Do you get minimum wage at least?”

Asked how he defined a woman, Rep. Jamie Raskin did not respond to America Rising. (Tierney L. Cross/Bloomberg)

Trump, on his first day in office, signed an executive order declaring that there are only : male and female.

The order declared that “women” or “woman” and “girls” or “girl” refer to “adult and juvenile human females, respectively.”

The also defined “female” as meaning “a person belonging, at conception, to the sex that produces the large reproductive cell.”  

The president highlighted his recent orders during his first joint address to Congress on Tuesday evening.

Vice President JD Vance and House Speaker Mike Johnson listen as President Donald Trump speaks to a joint session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, March 4, 2025. (Kent Nishimura/Bloomberg)

During the speech, the president , who suffered a brain injury after competing against a biological male in a volleyball match. McNabb was invited to the speech to represent Trump’s order barring biological males from competing in women’s sports.

“If you really want to see numbers, just take a look at what happened in women’s boxing, weightlifting, track and field, swimming or cycling, where a male recently finished a long-distance race five hours and 14 minutes ahead of a woman for a new record by five hours,” Trump told a joint session of Congress. “It’s demeaning for women, and it’s very bad for our country. We’re not going to put up with it any longer.”

“What I have just described is only a small fraction of the commonsense revolution that is now, because of us, sweeping the entire world,” Trump said. “Common sense has become a common theme, and we will never go back, never, ever going to let that happen.”

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