Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s request for bipartisan support on a ban blocking transgender athletes from competing in women’s sports was not supported by his fellow senators Wednesday.

Tuberville sponsored a similar bill of his own, but rose in support of a House resolution that passed 219-203 on Thursday. He asked senators for a vote of unanimous consent to pass the resolution, but was denied by Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii.

“My Republican colleagues are obsessed with controlling women’s bodies and our lives, as we are seeing yet again today,” Hirono said during her objection.

Hirono added that she was friends with former Rep. Patsy Mink, D-Hawaii, who co-authored the Title IX amendment. Mink, who was the first woman of color elected to the U.S. House of Representatives and the first Asian-American woman to serve in Congress, passed away in 2002.

“As someone who knew and was friends with Patsy Mink, the author of Title IX I can tell you, she would be standing right next to me to say Title IX in no way or shape supports what my colleague is attempting to do,” Hirono said. “Patsy spent her entire life fighting to advance equal opportunity for women and girls. It would pain her to know that the bill she fought so hard to make law is being twisted by Republicans to discriminate against the very people it was designed to protect.”

Tuberville reiterated his claims that the Biden Administration has “taken a sledgehammer to Title IX,” and again complained about the recently proposed rule that would protect the rights of transgender athletes and allow them to compete on teams consistent with their gender identity.

While he said a study reporting the involvement of transgender athletes in women’s sports is currently about .00025%, Tuberville added that “frankly, one championship or opportunity ripped away from a female by biological male is one too many.”

During a press call Wednesday morning, where he announced he would pursue a unanimous consent vote, Tuberville said he believes there will be a “huge influx of young men saying they are trans.”

“I would say in a five-or-10-year period, you’re going to have an overtaking of women’s sports, and so it’s not just what we’re talking about, a handful of people, as we speak. You’re talking about opportunities for young boys or young men to say, ‘Hey, I’ve got a better opportunity to participate against the women, and that’s what I’m going to do,’” Tuberville said in response to a question from AL.com.

He said he believes college athletics are a business and that because people’s jobs are on the line, coaches will recruit men to play in women’s sports.

“Again, at the end of the day, it’s about winning, and it’s about raising money, and you’re going to see coaches going out and recruiting young boys or young men to play in college athletics,” he said. “That’s going to eliminate basically Title IX.”

Tuberville’s effort comes after the Alabama House of Representatives passed a similar ban last week.

Rep. Chris England, D-Tuscaloosa, asked HB261 sponsor Rep. Susan DuBose, R-Hoover, if she was aware of any transgender athletes participating in college athletics in Alabama.

Like Tuberville, DuBose replied that “one opportunity is too many.”

Alabama already blocks K-12 students from playing school sports for teams that do not align with the gender on their birth certificate.

Alabama has also placed restrictions on classroom discussions surrounding gender identity and sexual orientation, and lawmakers are currently working to extend the age limit for such restrictions from fifth to eighth grade.

Additionally, the state passed legislation in 2022 requiring students to use bathrooms that align with the gender listed on their birth certificate.

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