The Trump administration has backed down after a federal court blocked its attempt to cut off school meal funding to Maine, a punishment for the state’s refusal to ban transgender girls from girls’ sports. Under the recently announced legal settlement, the USDA agreed to restore access to millions in nutrition funding and stop using school meals to enforce President Trump’s anti-trans order—at least for now.
The move follows a tense February showdown at the White House between Democratic Maine Governor Janet Mills and Trump. Trump demanded she comply with his executive order banning transgender athletes or lose all federal funding. She refused. In the recent statement, Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey said, “It’s unfortunate that my office had to resort to federal court just to get USDA to comply with the law and its own regulations…But we are pleased that the lawsuit has now been resolved and that Maine will continue to receive funds as directed by Congress to feed children and vulnerable adults.”
Still, Trump’s administration is pursuing a separate lawsuit, threatening $250 million in education funding. Advocates say this is part of a broader campaign to roll back transgender rights. Meanwhile, the ACLU is tracking over 575 anti-LGBTQ bills nationwide, as trans youth remain under political attack despite making up a tiny fraction of student athletes.
