A former Trump administration official is calling on the federal government to investigate the Women’s National Basketball Association for violating Caitlin Clark‘s civil rights.
Former White House adviser Sean McLean has called on the government to step in and investigate the physical abuse of the league’s top star.
There are rumors that Clark was forced to fake her groin injury so more attention would be focused on the rest of the league.
A viral video of Clark kicking a soccer ball while she’s supposedly injured only added to the speculation that she’s faking her injury.
Caitlin Clark soccer video adds to injury confusion among Fever fans https://t.co/AnwPAC0Lb5 pic.twitter.com/MFx1y2zUD9
— New York Post (@nypost) July 30, 2025
Who's confused? She's sitting out while being perfectly healthy as a means of punishing the league that doesn't appreciate the attention she's brought them, and further, doesn't PROTECT her. And she's fully justified in doing so.
— Alfredo Garza (@Alfredo32419283) July 30, 2025
The league’s TV ratings have plummeted to numbers not seen since 2023 – before Clark was drafted No. 1 in 2024.
There is no timetable for Clark to return to the Indiana Fever starting lineup.
“The league has fostered a hostile workplace for Ms. Clark through excessive fouling, targeting, and hostile comments from other players and owners,” McLean wrote in the Wall Street Journal.
“These aren’t isolated—they’re documented, continuing and ignored by officials. The disparity in treatment invites real scrutiny. Not a single player has been suspended for flagrantly fouling Ms. Clark,” he added.
Former Chicago Sky star Chennedy Carter signed with a Mexican professional league after she was bounced from the WNBA following her brutal hit on Clark last year.
But McLean says the WNBA is not doing enough to protect Clark.
McLean noted that Clark’s treatment is drastically different from any other young athlete entering a professional sports league.
“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,” McLean wrote.
McLean suggested that Clark should file a civil rights lawsuit against the WNBA similar to the lawsuit filed by Dearica Hamby when she was penalized for taking time off to have children.
“Instead of protecting its transformative star, the league’s leadership ignores the relentless targeting of Ms. Clark, treating its greatest asset as if she were a PR headache,” McLean added. “That approach could turn into a legal liability for the WNBA.”
