Podcast Summary: Federalist Radio Hour – “The Kylee Cast” feat. Chloe Cole, Ep. 29

Episode Title: Why The Transgender-Industrial Complex Is In Retreat
Date: February 19, 2026
Host: Kylie Griswold
Guest: Chloe Cole (detransitioner and advocate)

Episode Overview

In this episode of The Kylie Cast, host Kylie Griswold sits down with Chloe Cole, a high-profile detransitioner and activist for parental rights and the protection of children from medical transgender interventions. The conversation covers Chloe’s personal story, the ideological and institutional factors behind the transgender movement, messaging about womanhood, recent legal wins for detransitioners, and the broader social and spiritual implications, ending with Chloe’s journey to Christianity. The tone is empathetic, urgent, and hopeful, seeking to inform conservative listeners and those affected by the transgender movement about why the current tide is shifting.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Chloe Cole’s Story: From Transition to Detransition

[02:06]

• Chloe shares her “all-American” upbringing, being both a tomboy and creative, and the confusion that began in puberty.
• Early exposure to social media, especially Instagram and Tumblr, sparked curiosity about gender and led her to identify as a boy.
• Negative messaging about womanhood and body image contributed to her gender dysphoria.

“The older I got, the more that I just felt like I related a lot more to my older brothers and to my male peers…But none of this was something that I really cared about...until around the time I started to hit puberty.” —Chloe Cole [02:06]

• Social media communities, especially fandoms and meme groups, discussed identity politics, feminism, and various “gender identities”—this online influence was pivotal in shaping her thinking.

2. Online & Institutional Pressures

[05:59]

• Chloe describes how left-wing, identity-focused communities online created a sense of belonging and identity.
• She notes the radicalization effect such communities have on kids seeking identity.

[10:33]

• While her school didn’t push transgender ideology at the time, it’s now prevalent in classrooms.
• The institutional push began with therapy: therapists and doctors adhered to affirmation-only protocols, skipping root-cause mental health evaluations.

“I don’t think the adults in the room, other than my mom and dad, did their job at all the way that they were supposed to…they were just…not question[ing] at all, to go along with whatever the child wants…” —Chloe Cole [12:02]

• Parental research yielded only affirming paths; doctors pressured them with suicide alarmism (“Would you rather have a live son or a dead daughter?”).

[15:38] (on medical blackmail)

“That emotional blackmail component … is so strong. And that is such a, it’s such a big part of the Fox Varian case…The power of that question, from medical professionals to parents who feel vulnerable and scared is, cannot be understated.” —Kylie Griswold

3. Messaging About Womanhood & Conservative Missed Opportunities

[18:56]

• Chloe and Kylie discuss the lack of positive messaging about femininity, motherhood, and the blessings of womanhood, even among conservatives.
• Chloe says the “straw that broke the camel’s back” on transgender ideology was realizing her desire to be a mother.

“The single biggest thing that broke me out of the ideology was learning that one day I would want to become a mother. And that would conflict with not just this lifestyle, but also the fact that by doing this so young, I could be sterilized…” —Chloe Cole [18:56]

• Both stress the need for a balanced conservative message, not just “careerism” or reducing women to wives/mothers, but celebrating all feminine diversity.

[24:43]

“Feminism and the sexual revolution have made it so that we’re so far removed from our own biology and the real meaning of things like sex...” —Chloe Cole

4. Legal Milestone: The Fox Varian Case

[28:00]

• Chloe discusses the New York Fox Varian case—first detransitioner legal victory in one of America’s most liberal counties.
• The case centered on lack of informed consent, harm from double mastectomy at age 16, and psychological harm to her mother.

“She ended up having the very first win for a detransitioner lawsuit in New York of all places, in a very, one of the most … liberal counties in the U.S. … She won about $2 million … I think it bodes very well for the detransitioner movement for the future of the law going forward on these cases.” —Chloe Cole [28:00]

• Chloe’s own lawsuit vs. Kaiser Permanente is broader, addresses standards of care and fraud, and is soon headed to court.

5. The Tidal Shift in the Transgender-Industrial Complex

[34:41]

• Following Fox Varian’s win, organizations like the AMA and ASPS recommend delaying surgical transitions until adulthood—a “huge reversal.”
• Lawsuits are driving a shift in institutional backing, not just public opinion; financial liability is now a significant risk for providers.

“Even if the majority of the country is like, yeah, that’s junk science, they [doctors] don’t care, because if they’re not getting successful lawsuits … it is a cash cow.” —Kylie Griswold [38:28]

• Medical establishment’s incentives (profit and affirmation ideology) are discussed, along with how this dynamic is being disrupted.

6. The Neglect and Trauma of Detransitioners

[42:10]

• Chloe details her ongoing struggle to get appropriate medical care post-detransition: persistent misgendering, doctors unable to process detransition.

“There is no acknowledgement of detransition in the medical system… There’s no standards. There’s no billing codes. So they’re kind of at a loss of what to actually do…” —Chloe Cole [44:03]

7. Transgender Movement and Violence

[46:37]

• Discussion of the rising trend of violence perpetrated by trans-identifying individuals (e.g., recent Canadian shooting).
• Chloe highlights the obscuring of facts (biological sex, mental health, drug status) in media coverage.
• She emphasizes hormonal and psychological destabilization as additional dangers and reiterates that pushing youth down this path is dangerous socially and individually.

8. The Deeper Crisis: Spiritual and Societal Truth

[49:17]

• Kylie pivots to the spiritual emptiness and cultural delusion fostered by transgender ideology.
• She frames transgenderism as an effort to “play God,” referencing the Biblical story of the Fall, and asserts that only Christianity offers true redemption.

9. Chloe Cole’s Conversion to Christianity

[51:40]

• Chloe recounts being raised agnostic/atheist, her fractured sense of God during transition, and how evangelism and faith provided the grounding and purpose she needed during and after detransition.

“Now I know that even in the most painful parts of my life, it was all part of a plan to get me to where I am now. And I would not be the young woman who I am today without any of it…You are not broken. No matter what’s taken away from you, no matter what parts of your life you’re losing forever, you can be made anew in Christ…” —Chloe Cole [54:17]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On Affirmation-Only Medical Care

“There was none of that. It was just they were. So they were going pretty much completely by protocol. Right. Which that means to not question at all, to go along with whatever the child wants…”
—Chloe Cole [12:02]

On the Power of Motherhood

“The single biggest thing that broke me out of the ideology was learning that one day I would want to become a mother. And that would conflict with not just this lifestyle, but also the fact that by doing this so young, I could be sterilized...”
—Chloe Cole [18:56]

On Legal Shifts Due to Lawsuits

“She ended up having the very first win for a detransitioner lawsuit in New York ... And I think that it’s going to encourage a lot more detransitioners and people who have been harmed to not just speak out, but also to try to seek justice ...”
—Chloe Cole [28:00]

On Institutional Change

“[Medical groups] came out just days later with statements basically saying that they recommend delaying so-called gender affirming care until adulthood. And that’s a huge reversal.”
—Kylie Griswold [36:20]

On Spiritual Redemption

“You are not broken ... No matter what’s taken away from you, no matter what parts of your life you’re losing forever, you can be made anew in Christ...”
—Chloe Cole [54:17]

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Chloe’s Early Story and Social Media Influence – [02:06] to [09:29]
• Therapy/Systemic Medical Failures – [12:02] to [15:38]
• Messaging About Womanhood – [18:56] to [26:35]
• Fox Varian Legal Case Explained – [28:00] to [33:44]
• Broader Legal and Cultural Impact – [34:41] to [38:28]
• Medical Establishment Pushback and Trauma Post-Detransition – [42:10] to [44:23]
• Transgender Movement and Violence – [46:37] to [49:17]
• Spiritual Crisis and Christian Hope – [49:17] to [55:15]

Conclusion

Kylie and Chloe end on a note of gratitude and optimism, highlighting the legal and spiritual victories as turning points for both the detransitioner movement and society’s broader return to truth and biological reality. Chloe’s journey of healing through faith, combined with legal progress, offers listeners hope and concrete reasons to be optimistic about the future.

Follow Chloe Cole for more updates on her advocacy and legal case.