Ex-White House Staffer Wants Federal Investigation Launched For Caitlin Clark, WNBA originally appeared on The Spun.
WNBA fans, or fans of Caitlin Clark in particular, have been fuming in recent months over the league’s inability to protect the Indiana Fever megastar. But one former White House staffer believes that the treatment she’s received in the WNBA warrants a federal investigation.
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In a recent column for the Wall Street Journal, former White House staff member Sean McLean made the case that the “excessive fouling, targeting, and hostile comments” she has received in the WNBA constitute a “hostile work environment.” He called for a federal probe into “potential civil rights violations.”
“The league has fostered a hostile workplace for Ms. Clark through excessive fouling, targeting, and hostile comments from other players and owners,” McLean wrote.
McLean argued that the “targeting” of Clark may “reflect a culture of disparate treatment” that warrants at least an investigation, if not punishments. He pointed to a different case involving Los Angeles Sparks star Dearica Hamby’s federal discrimination complaint back in 2023, when she alleged that the Las Vegas Aces traded her because she was pregnant.
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“Ms. Clark’s targeting may reflect a culture of disparate treatment, and the evidence provides reasonable cause for a federal probe into potential civil-rights violations. This would mirror the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission investigation into Dearica Hamby’s pregnancy discrimination claims against the WNBA and her team. Congress and the Labor and Justice departments would be justified in examining the facts.”
Opposition
As much as some basketball fans believe that Clark is being mistreated in the WNBA, many fans believe that this suggestion from McLean is a bridge too far.
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“I believe CC gets targeted and hit harder than any player in the league, but this is the WNBA. This is a sport. No way in (expletive) did you really call this civil rights violations. Are you truly comparing this to police brutality, fire hoses and other forms of ACTUAL civil rights violations to someone being FOULED in a basketball game. Come on, Now! The fact the WSJ published this is actually kind of embarrassing. You are entitled to your opinion, but this is way over the line. No, it doesn’t demand federal scrutiny and calling them civil rights violations is insulting and disrespectful to so many people. Did you feel the same way when Michael Jordan was getting clotheslined by Bill Laimbeer harder than any foul CC has ever had in her life. Were those fouls civil rights violations? Heck, they wrote a book about beating the crap out of him,” one user responded to the op-ed.
“This is the weakest article in regards to sports that has ever been written,” another said.
“There’s no nice way to say how dumb this is. You want the Federal Government to do intercede in the WNBA because you think Clark gets fouled too hard? Can you imagine how dumb Clark must think this is?” a third pointed out.
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Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) gets the crowd excited Tuesday, May 20, 2025, during a game between the Indiana Fever and the Atlanta Dream at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The Atlanta Dream defeated the Indiana Fever, 91-90.Grace Smith/IndyStar.
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That isn’t to say that the suggestion has been completely rejected. ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith was among the biggest voices in sports media to see the article and suggest that it might not be a bad idea:
“I’m not here saying the case will be won by the government if it gets to the points. I’m saying they have a case, they have an argument,” Smith said on Tuesday’s episode of the Stephen A. Smith Show.
“If the Trump administration can settle with Columbia for a $221 million settlement over what’s taken place on a campus, you think you can definitively rule out what kind of noise could be made if the WNBA continues to allow this treatment of Caitlin Clark?”
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Others in the comments on the post agree that McLean might be onto something there. A few have said that if they were related to Clark, they would have advised her to leave the WNBA a while ago.
Do you think there needs to be a federal investigation into fouling Caitlin Clark?
Ex-White House Staffer Wants Federal Investigation Launched For Caitlin Clark, WNBA first appeared on The Spun on Aug 7, 2025
This story was originally reported by The Spun on Aug 7, 2025, where it first appeared.