>>
that
donald trump
backs down. but following an outcry, he's decided to lift the ban on a transgender woman from entering his
miss universe
competition. well, nbc's
mike taibbi
has the latest. mike, good morning.
>>
good morning, ann. well this dust-up over whether a transgender
beauty queen
can compete for one of the pageant world's top prizes is generating lots of publicity. no problem for
donald trump
, of course. but for
jenna
talackova's
west coast
lawyer. she is 6'1", statuesque and striking and until recently competed in transgender
beauty pageants
. 23-year-old
jenna
talackova, a canadian, told a reporter for the pageant that she knew from the time she could think that she was not the male she was at birth.
>>
i always knew since i was about like 4.
>>
really?
>>
and i started my therapy and
hormone therapy
when i was 14. and then i went through with the surgery when i was 19.
>> reporter:
it was
sex reassignment surgery
and her passport lists her sex as female. but talackova was disqualified from the upcoming
miss universe canada
pageant because she was not a natural-born female despite having stated otherwise on her entry form. an
online petition
drive by her supporters garnered 20,000 signatures and yesterday
donald trump
's
miss universe organization
said she can compete provided she meet the legal gender recognition requirements of canada and the standards of other international competitions.
>>
we need a clear answer. not a wimpy, wish washy type of answer.
>> reporter:
later to tmz trump said it clearly.
>>
we go by the law and based on the laws she's able to compete if she wants to.
>> reporter:
trump has been
center stage
in other pageant controversies.
>>
she made some very, very bad choices.
>> reporter:
giving a second chance to
2006
miss usa
tara conner
, after she became embroiled in a cocaine and underage drinking scandal. and that created trump's epic battle with
rosie o
'donnell. on "the view."
>>
there he is with the hair going, rosie --
>> reporter:
and trump on "
access hollywood
."
>>
rosie's been a loser for a long time.
>> reporter:
and trump harshly criticized
2009
miss usa
runner-up. now it's
jenna
talackova, the first transgender to go for the
miss universe
crown.
>>
letting people know that she is proud of being transgendered, and certainly, i think, makes her a pioneer.
>> reporter:
as for
jenna
--
>>
i have never asked for any special consideration. i only want to compete.
>> reporter:
we should note that the misuniverse pageant is a
joint venture
between
donald trump
and
nbc universal
. the canadian
miss universe
entry will be chosen at a pageant in may. trump says all this publicity has ramped up demand for tickets and his words know, that wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. big surprise there.
>>
that's right. all right mike
“ ”