The WallBuilders Show
The WallBuilders Show is a daily journey to examine today's issues from a Biblical, Historical and Constitutional perspective. Featured guests include elected officials, experts, activists, authors, and commentators.
The WallBuilders Show
Saving Fairness In Women’s Sports
Start with a simple question: should medals, scholarships, and roster spots meant for girls be decided by biology or identity? We dive straight into a Supreme Court showdown that could reset Title IX and define fairness in women’s sports for more than half the country. With Senator Mayes Middleton at the table, we unpack how states like Idaho and West Virginia crafted sex-based competition laws, why Texas took similar steps, and what the Justices’ questions reveal about where this ruling might land.
This conversation moves beyond headlines. We revisit the legal sea change that came when the Court scrapped the Lemon test, opening the door for public expressions of faith—like Fort Worth’s granite Ten Commandments monument—and explore how that shift affects the way courts weigh moral clarity against ideological pressure. Senator Middleton shares hard-won lessons from the legislative trenches, why the Save Women’s Sports movement centers on immutable realities, and how safety, privacy, and opportunity for girls are compromised when categories lose their meaning. We also look at the contradictions exposed in arguments that refuse to define “woman” while seeking to reshape female sports.
The stakes are real: 29 states have laws that hinge on the Court’s next move. We spotlight athlete stories, the practical impact on competitions and locker rooms, and the broader principle that durable civil rights require objective standards. This isn’t about partisan talking points—it’s about restoring fairness to competition and coherence to policy. We close by connecting the legal fight to education reforms in Texas and the importance of leaders who defend constitutional order with courage and clarity.
If you care about Title IX, women’s sports, or the future of faith and law in public life, this episode brings context, candor, and a roadmap for what comes next. Listen, share with a friend, and leave a review to tell us where you think the Court should draw the line.
Rick Green [00:00:07] You’ve found your way to the intersection of faith and culture. Thanks for joining us today on The WallBuilders Show. Rick Green here with David Barton and Tim Barton. And you can find out more about all three of us at wallbuilders.com. That's our main website, literally for rebuilding the walls. I mean, this is the Nehemiah moment of our generation. If you want to be a part of it, go to wallbuilders.com and then if you've missed any radio programs the last couple of weeks, make sure you go to wallbuilders.show and you need to just save that in your bookmarks up on your browser so you can listen every day to wallbuilders.show and share it with your friends. And family later in the program. Mayes Middleton will be with a state senator out of Texas. There was a big Supreme court case heard at the Supreme court. I think it was a week ago, guys. Y'all remind me. I think. It was, it might've been longer than that, but anyway, big case on guys in girls’ sports.
Tim Barton [00:00:52] Well, Rick, it has been a while. And actually, last night, I was thinking I had a dream.
Rick Green [00:00:59] Right, there's something else we should point out today. Yes
Tim Barton [00:01:02] I just yeah, well it was a dream about something...
Rick Green [00:01:04] What did you dream Tim? What was your dream?
Tim Barton [00:01:07] Well, it might be different for me than it was for somebody else.
Rick Green [00:01:11] Yeah, yeah
Tim Barton [00:01:13] You know, yeah, also today is MLK Jr Holiday. And so some of our fine federal institutions are closed today, which doesn't hurt most of our feelings, for most of what's going on. But yeah, Rick, I think you're right. I think it was last week when that case was U.S. Supreme court. And actually, I had the chance to be with Mayes last Friday in Fort Worth down at Tarrant County at their courthouse, they unveiled a new Ten Commandment Statue. Which part of, you know, what's happened since the coach Joe Kennedy decision that first Liberty had back in the US Supreme court back in 2022. And that decision where the US Supreme Court decided that Lemon was bad law and that was overturned. Lemon of course was the case that was used, cited more than 7,000 times when it was first issued in 1971 up until it was overturned in 2022. And that's what was used to stop religious activity and expression from any kind of public square, public arena, et cetera. And so, there's a lot of places, for example, that had displays of the 10 Commandments that in 1980, there was a Supreme Court decision that required all 10 Commandment displays on public government property to come down. But now that Lemon's been overturned, a lot those places are restoring the versions of the Ten Commandments that have been taken down. And Fort Worth is one of those places that resurrected and put back up on display of the Ten Commandments. But this time... They did kind of like what the Texas has down at our state capital in Austin, they used a granite massive monument in true Texas style. They wanted this one to be a little bigger than the one in Austin, so it's actually taller than the one in Austin but I got to be there with Mayes Middleton and actually lots of people. Matt Krause, one of our good friends, friend of the program. We've known and worked with Matt for years. He's actually spoken for WallBuilders on many occasions. If one of us can't make an event, we often call up our friend, Matt Krause, but he is now a county commissioner and he and Judge Tim O'Hare in Fort Worth. They're the ones that kind of led the charge on getting the 10 Commandments restored and back on display. And so, I got to be with Mayes while he was there for that. And we talked about some of what had happened this year with him fighting for things in the state. He actually this year introduced a bill on having prayer back in public schools and a bill on having the Bible back in public schools, which we, Dad, you and I got to testify and committee for that. It actually passed that of the house and the Senate and Governor Abbott signed that into law. So, Mayes has been a champion of some basic foundational constitutional biblical principles, really his whole time in politics. I was really fun to be with him Friday, but I'm glad he's on the program today. That we can talk through some of the other legislative stuff he's done and maybe even he can give us some perspective on what happened at the U.S. Supreme Court last week.
Rick Green [00:04:09] Well now before, before y'all go any further on the, on the court case, I gotta ask because speaking of granite, 10 commandments, we had the privilege of bringing all the Patriot Institute scholars up and before we came over to see you Tim and thank you for the late-night tour with all the scholars. They absolutely loved it. And I was blown away by how much, I mean, the improvements and the additions and the, all the cool stuff to the museum, just incredible. But before we come to see you, we ran over to your other museum guys to, at AJE where y' all teamed up with Glenn to do all the stuff over there. And there was a granite 10 commandments monument in pieces. And I just want to make sure y'all know, I didn't break it. I just, I, I don't know if it was broken before I got there or anything, but since you weren't there, I just wanna make sure I'm off the hook because Mike Noriega was, you know, trying to blame me for the broken, I think it was Mississippi's or there was some other state, I dunno where it came from.
Tim Barton [00:04:59] Arkansas!
[00:05:00] Oh, Arkansas'! Okay. Well, then this since I'm from Arkansas, I could have been, could have been me anyway, I thought that was really cool.
David Barton [00:05:06] Rick, you may consider yourself pretty tough, but that broken monument at 6,500 pounds, I guarantee you, you didn't break it.
Rick Green [00:05:13] All right, well good.
David Barton [00:05:14] And actually, now that we've raised the story regarding that big 10 Commandments monument, 6, 500 pounds, it was in Arkansas, and there was a guy in Arkansas who was really, he was an atheist, he was really ticked that they put it up, and so he's going to express his displeasure by driving his truck into that monument.
Rick Green [00:05:34] Oh, wow.
David Barton [00:05:34] Stupid idea anyway. That 6,500-pound monument is a whole lot more than two or three of his trucks combined, and it didn't do him any good, but that monument is down there. They've now replaced that monument, but we have that broken one down on display at the museum just showing kind of how intolerant some people are with American history, how they dislike it. So don't worry, Rick, you didn't break it. You're not that tough. You're tough, but you're just not that tough.
Rick Green [00:06:02] I just tend to break things everywhere I go. You know, like there's, there's just tends to be awake and Tim made sure he was, he was checking my pockets when I left the museum the other night from you guys. So don't worry, uh nothing, nothing gone, hopefully. But seriously, but by the way, just to our audience out there that may not, you don't, we don't talk about the museum enough here on the, on the program may not be familiar. I mean, you guys have, have this incredible collection and one of the coolest things that stood out to me, I mean only place you can go and see all the signers of the Dec(laration), all the signs of the Constitution. With something signed, you know, some handwritten document of, of each of those guys and I love the new display that you did that whole wall with. So anyway, just great stuff and you know more people need to know about it, they can learn more about it at wallbuilders.com and maybe even set up a chance to come by and see it. We've got, we got Mayes with us when we come back from the break. And like you said, Tim, there's so many things we can talk to Mayes about. Y'all have worked with him a lot on legislation and different things. This one at the Supreme Court, really, really cool. I mean, this could set policy for all the other states that did not allow for these kinds of laws to be passed. So, we'll find out what Mayes thinks about it and we'll be back. Stay with us, folks. You're listening to The WallBuilders Show.
Rick Green [00:08:18] Welcome back to the WallBuilders Show. Thanks for staying with us. Senator Mayes Middleton back with us. Senator, good to hear from your brother. How you doing?
Mayes Middleton [00:08:24] I'm great, Rick. Thanks for having me on today.
Rick Green [00:08:26] Well, man, I know you're in a DC and of course, the Supreme Court case on getting guys out of women's sports and stealing all the women's trophies and, and scholarships and everything else now at the Supreme Court. But you've been at this for years ahead of the game on this fight and passed great legislation here in our home state of Texas. So man, just wanted to get your thoughts on how you thought the hearing went and just the questions of some of the justices and so appreciate your time, man. Thanks for, thanks for coming on to talk about that. What'd you think so far?
Mayes Middleton [00:08:59] Well, look, I mean, this is basic common sense. And what we're doing is we're fighting for all the daughters and future daughters of not just Texas, but this entire country. And that's why I authored and passed the Save Women's Sports Act. You know, Riley Gaines was right there alongside me in the trenches in 2023, getting this done because what is really happening and what this is really about is men pretending to be women that are stealing victory, hard-earned spots on teams, and even scholarships. It's wrong. We all know this is wrong. And I believe this will be the final defeat of this radical transgender ideology at the Supreme Court. We've seen a little preview of this in the Skirmetti case that they had, and Justice Barrett had some very wise words. She said, Transgender individuals these people don't deserve any protection because there's only male and female. They're the ones that deserve protection because God only made two sexes, male and female, period. And this will be the final defeat of that transgender agenda.
Rick Green [00:10:13] Wow so it's a you feel pretty good about what you heard in terms of the questions and that sort of thing I mean obviously the case should be strong there are clearly some absurd statements made by some of the more liberal members of the court but in you know you can kind of get a feel for it and you came out there feeling pretty positive?
Mayes Middleton [00:10:31] Yeah. And look at the end of the day this is something else that Justice Barrett said in the Skirmetti case. She said that immutable characteristics are what are protected under Title IX and Equal Protection Law. You know, it's not immutable when you're a man pretending to be a woman and I've seen how violent these radicals are. I mean, Riley Gaines brought her daughter to this hearing yesterday and had to wrap her in a bulletproof blanket. That shows you the evil that we're up against. This is a spiritual battle that we are in. And we are the light and they are the dark. And look, I've seen this firsthand. I've been protested at the Texas Capitol. You know, they had these big green signs with my face on it, red X's through my eyes, and they called me the bathroom bigot. Why? Because I don't want men in my little girl's restroom or locker room or shower. I mean, this is common sense to keep our daughters safe. I have a four-year-old little girl. I don't want a man playing girl sports. I don't want a men in her restroom, locker room, or shower. It's about keeping our families safe as well. And, you know, unfortunately the left doesn't stop there. I mean they threaten violence over this because we are beating them. You know, they actually threatened my life. They threatened my family's life. Why? Because I'm defeating the left. I'm the one that's beating them, they know. Who their actual enemy is. And these two cases before the Supreme Court, both the Idaho law and the West Virginia law, I'm confident we'll deliver that victory for fairness in girls and women's sports for this entire nation.
Rick Green [00:12:17] I'm glad you brought that up to Mayes the two different cases, the two different states that's coming from Idaho, I think you said West Virginia. Are they, are they, or are they pretty similar? I mean, is it basically the same, it's the same issue of kind of biological male compete in, in women's sports. I mean does it, it really is that simple, right?
Mayes Middleton [00:12:37] It is that simple. And look, the question is, are these men pretending to be women? Are they a suspect class or they're protected class? And the answer is no, they're not. Because they're doing it because they can't hack it right in men's sports. It's like Will Thomas, Leah Thomas, you know, who stole victory from Riley Gaines. He was near the bottom when he was in men's swimming. But then so he decided that he wanted a medal, so he pretended to be a woman. Actually, he was trying to date even some of Riley's classmates and teammates that were in the locker room with him when he was naked. I mean, this just shows you how evil this is. And that's what it's really about. You know, they're trying to steal victory from actual women and what is crazy is the left is fighting so hard to undermine Title IX. And all Title IX insurers is fairness for women. It's all it insures.
Rick Green [00:13:40] Yeah. Oh man. I, yeah, I, I know you had to go through all this when you were doing the legislation, but how many times a day do you have to go, I cannot believe this is happening, like I feel like I am in La La Land. It's, you know, Scotty beam me up from this strange planet that, that I've, that I found myself in. The things that even some of the, you know, justices said, Katanji Brown Jackson, and it just, it really makes you wonder, is this, like you said, is it just a spiritual deception for people to actually think these crazy things you know, that men can have babies and, and all the rest? You, know, how do you stay, and this is getting a little bit more personal here, cause I know you're also in a tough fight for AG, which I've endorsed you and appreciate so much what you've done for us in the legislature. How do you say optimistic and joyful in, in the face of that kind of insanity? Where you're literally having to make yourself be calm and make the you know, just the constitutional and the logical arguments. But in the back of your mind going, this is insane. I cannot believe we're spending time on this argument this should have been a no-brainer. Like, I guess just give us a window into how, how, how we can also stay sane in these, some of these fights?
Mayes Middleton [00:14:53] Well, look Rick, this is a calling for me. This is not a job. And one of the most basic important things that I've been fighting for since day one in office is restoring biblical values in government. And I want to be very clear about this. We are a Christian nation and the Texas constitution, the preamble of our Texas constitution says humbly invoking the blessings of almighty God. You know what? That's a prayer. That's what we're founded on. We have a Ten Commandments Monument on the grounds of the Capitol, above the dice in the house, in the Senate. It says, in God we trust, and every desk in both chambers has a Bible in it because everything we do has to be built on His foundation. And this is a fundamental fight we're in right now, because look, if government can tell you what sex you are, it can tell anything. So, we're not just fighting for basic biological truths, we're fighting for basic biblical truths as well.
Rick Green [00:15:57] Amen. And that's the long-term battle for the health of the country. If we're going to make it great again, we've got to go back to what made it great in the first place, which is what you just laid out. Last thing, Mays, what do you think the timeline is? When do you we'll hear from the Supreme Court on this case?
Mayes Middleton [00:16:12] I think we'll hear soon. It was fairly obvious the way the court was going to go today with the, the hearings and, and look in the arguments that were made by obviously one of the justices that can't tell you what a woman is, I mean, how pathetic is that justice Jackson cannot even tell you in the ACLU as well. And I'll remind everyone the ACLU is bad on everything. They want open borders. They were the ones that lobbied against the 10 Commandments Bill, which I fought for. They lobbied against the prayer and public-school bill, which is a law that I wrote. They've lobbied it against school choice. They lobby against religious based instruction. They lobby again, teaching kids about the Old and the New Testament. Children need to know God's law. I mean, period, at the end of the day. And including this as well, they're lobbying to hurt our daughters, right? And allow boys to play girl sports. And they're the ones that say they can't define what a woman is. They can't tell you. And it's whatever you say is their definition, which anyone can make up anything. Right. Right. Yeah. I mean, why not say that you're over 65 and claim an over 65 homestead exemption? Right? I mean make that up too. There are just no facts anymore with the left and it is whatever they tell you it is. And that's why it's so dangerous because it's anarchy, it's chaos, and it's undermining what God has granted us and those basic truths, you know. Those God granted freedoms that we all are fighting for here, especially everyone listening on the show, because government doesn't grant us any rights. Our freedoms are from God. And that's what the ACLU and those that are opposing us in the Supreme Court are going after.
Rick Green [00:18:00] Amen, amen! Mayes Middleton. Hey, what's the best website for folks to learn more about you? I mean, you just rattled off a few of those fights that you've been in and that we've had you on to interview about over the years, but some of our listeners may not be familiar with you, but they may be new listeners. What's the the best way for them to follow you?
Mayes Middleton [00:18:17] So mayesmittleton.com, M-A-Y-E-S-M-I-D-D L-E T-O-N.com. And hopefully you have seen my MAGA Mayes commercials that are running right now all over Texas. You know, back when I ran for Texas Senate, President Trump said my conservative record was second to none, and I was a MAGA champion. Look, I've been fighting for our value since day one in office. I was chairman of the Freedom Caucus, have always been ranked as the top one or two most conservative members. And I give away the salary, I don't take the pension, the healthcare, the state license plate. I am only here to serve and fight for the Christian conservative values that we believe in.
Rick Green [00:18:59] Amen! Love it! We appreciate you, man. Thank you so much for this particular fight, but all the other stuff you're doing as well. And safe travel back home to Texas.
Mayes Middleton [00:19:06] I appreciate it, Rick. Hey, thank you for having me on today.
Rick Green [00:19:09] You bet. Senator, thank you, man. Appreciate it very much. Stay with us, folks. We'll be right back with David and Tim Barton.
Rick Green [00:20:20] Welcome back to the WallBuilders Show. Thanks for staying with us. Thanks to Mayes Middleton for joining us as well out there on the campaign trail for Attorney General this year, but still in the Senate and obviously in D.C. And paying attention to this case, even though it's, what was it, Tim? It was West Virginia and another state, but it wasn't our Texas law. Somewhere else. I can't remember. Oh, I know.
Tim Barton [00:20:38] It wasn't the Texas law, but there's are several states that this certainly will impact based on what happens from it. And as Mayes pointed out, this was something that the save women's act that he brought in Texas. And guys, this actually, we definitely want to come back and talk about some of what Mayes discussed, but Dad, this goes back really to our friend in Idaho, Barbara Ehart, who really started so much of this saving girl’s sports movement back before COVID. When this wasn't even really a conversation, but we saw this coming, it was something that our Pro Family Legislative Conference, we had a session where we talked about being a little more strategic, offensive minded, putting up some better guard rails to protect American citizens, kids, families, et cetera. And Barbara Ehart's the one that first started this and now it's gone on in dozens of states and Mays was the one who brought it in Texas and we're so grateful he did. But what happens via the Supreme Court will definitely have impact. And Rick as you were even asking Mayes, you know, what was your vibe? What did you think and feel? Some of the, some of the questions were quite interesting. And even the ACLU when they were asked about like defining gender or sex, and they said, well, you, know, that's not really for us to do. And it's like, that the whole premise of your case. But this is what is, is so silly and was on full display from the left, where they want equality for all people. They can't define women, but they want more women to be leaders and empower, even though we don't know what a woman is. I mean, it just, it's so inconsistent. It's intellectually dishonest. And that's part of what we saw on display at the US Supreme Court, because even with Katanji Brown Jackson, who, when she was going through her Senate confirmation, was not able to provide an answer for what a women was, but all of a sudden she had some insight into the transgender identity perspective, and if they identify as a woman, then they should be recognized and classified, even though she doesn't know what a woman is, right? Again, just the intellectual inconsistencies, hypocrisy, and dishonesty from the left so often as they are arguably just working to change words to promote their agenda, but it is, it will be very interesting what happens coming down from this case because it will impact a lot of states, including Texas.
David Barton [00:23:03] Yeah, Tim, as you mentioned, there were a number of states, I think there's 29 states that now have this law in place. So, this will affect more than half the nation, certainly more than have the population. And I thought what Mayes said about this being kind of the final blow of that really weird movement, that this is kind of the final leg they have to stand on and this will go away. And he hopes it will end this whole issue publicly. We'll see. I think it has a good chance and everything we saw indicates the court's gonna go that direction. But there are, this is such a big deal and, you know, him pointing out that Riley Gaines' daughter, had to wrap her in a bulletproof blanket just to go to the Supreme Court. You know, what kind of country is that and what kind of opponents are these? But these are folks that literally, they're in the situation they have because they don't have an objective standard. They're so focused on themselves and they are the measurement for everything right and wrong. And if I want to do it and if I think it's right, it's okay. It's like the Bible talks about you go look at yourself in a mirror and you see something wrong and don't fix it and walk away. That's not a smart person. These guys aren't even looking in a mirror. They've got no idea what the outer world is like except through their perspective, their viewpoint. And that's really a dangerous place to be where you can't see anything through anyone else's eyes except your own. And at that point they do get crazy. And just to imagine a little girl having to be wrapped in a bulletproof blanket to go to a U.S. Supreme Court hearing. That's pretty untenable. And Rick, to what you mentioned, I'm gonna jump in on too, because you've endorsed Mayes, I've endorsed Mayes. And Texas, this is a pretty deep, oh and Tim, that's right. Tim....
Tim Barton [00:24:42] I mean, why am I left out here, guys? I endorse Mayes too.
David Barton [00:24:46] All of us are there.
Rick Green [00:24:47] Here at endorsement, there at endorsements, everywhere at endorsement.
David Barton [00:24:50] In Texas this is a big deal because he's running for our attorney general. Our current attorney general who's been very good in arguing these cases and standing up for these constitutional issues is now running against our current US Senator John Cornyn. So Ken Paxton is running for that, leaving the attorney general's seat open. And so Mayes is running for that attorney general seat and that's the chief law enforcement officer in Texas. And someone with the world view that Mayes has, the constitutional knowledge he has, and the courage he has. That's the kind of people you want defending your laws in a state. So that's a really important race for us here in Texas.
Tim Barton [00:25:28] Well, and guys too, it's worth pointing out that there's, in the Texas attorney general spot, there are four people running on the Republican side. We actually know them. And there are some really good candidates in there. But when it comes to the biblical foundation, Mayes has just been somebody that we've been very impressed with in a lot of ways. So not that we don't think Chip Roy or somebody like that might not do a good job. Cause frankly, I think Chip would also do an incredible job. But as we have seen the example for Mayes for a long time, fighting for not just constitutional values and principles, but when you have a guy fighting to get prayer back in school, fighting to get the Bible back in schools, that's the kind of person that we need to restore the foundation of our nation, that biblical, that religious moral constitutional foundation.
Rick Green [00:26:19] Yeah, good stuff. Well, great program today guys. I love these victories on the, on the Ten Commandments on getting, you know, guys out of girls sports, all these different things that are happening. And I just feel like 2026, man, we're just going to have so many great programs like this talking about victories like this on the Supreme Court case. Of course, we won't know for a few more weeks or maybe even the summer, what the outcome of is going to be, but based on the questioning, everybody feels pretty good about it. Thanks for listening today, folks. You've been listening to the WallBuilders Show.
