As soon as he takes office, Trump is expected to sign an executive order removing transgender people from the US military, sources tell The Times.
According to the sources, the order will ban transgender people from serving in the country’s military and dismiss those already in the armed forces on medical grounds.
Already in 2017, during Trump’s first term, he announced that the US would no longer “accept or allow” transgender people in the military – citing the “tremendous medical costs and disruption” their presence was deemed to cause.
The ban was also partially enforced in 2019 but then lifted during Joe Biden’s presidency, now that Trump will be president again, the issue of a “trans-free” US military is expected to be a very high priority.
Pete Hegseth, Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Defense, shares the President’s views on the issue and also supported his previous actions to remove transgender people from military service. He has claimed, among other things, that transgender individuals create “complications” and are “not deployable” in the military.
LGBTQ organization outraged
It is not entirely clear how many transgender people are currently serving in the US military, but some estimates put the number as high as 15,000.
– Abruptly discharging 15,000-plus service members, especially given that the military’s recruiting targets fell short by 41,000 recruits last year, adds administrative burdens to warfighting units, harms unit cohesion, and aggravates critical skill gaps, argues Rachel Branaman, head of the LGBTQ organization Modern Military Association of America.
– There would be a significant financial cost, as well as a loss of experience and leadership that will take possibly 20 years and billions of dollars to replace, the lobbyist further argues.
