Trump plans to remove transgender soldiers from the military – Times

US President-elect Donald Trump is reportedly planning to implement a ban on transgender individuals serving in the US military, according to a report by The Times on Monday, which cites defense sources. The proposed plan involves Trump signing an executive order soon after his inauguration that would lead to the discharge of currently serving transgender personnel and prevent future enlistment of such individuals.

Approximately 15,000 active-duty service members are openly transgender. Those affected by the ban would be discharged on medical grounds, classified as unfit for service based on their gender identity. It remains uncertain whether any assessments will be required to verify their transgender status.

This new policy is viewed as a more stringent iteration of the ban Trump enacted during his first term. In 2018, he prohibited openly transgender individuals from joining the military but permitted those already in service to retain their positions. At that time, Trump asserted that he had consulted military experts and determined that transgender individuals should not serve in the armed forces “in any capacity.” He emphasized that their inclusion would incur “tremendous medical costs,” citing the need for costly hormone treatments.

The ban was lifted by outgoing President Joe Biden in 2021.

Pete Hegseth, who was nominated by Trump for the position of defense secretary, is anticipated to endorse this decision. The former Fox News personality and US National Guard veteran recently released a book titled ‘The War on Warriors,’ in which he criticized the US military for adopting what he perceives as woke ideology, claiming it has led to a more “effeminate” force due to its focus on diversity and inclusion. He also called on the next president to “clean house” and contended that the medical expenses associated with transgender service members are excessively burdensome for the Pentagon.

Various sources have indicated that implementing a potential ban would be ill-timed for the US military, which is currently facing challenges in meeting recruitment goals.

“Suddenly discharging over 15,000 service members, particularly when the military fell short by 41,000 recruits last year, would impose additional administrative challenges on combat units, disrupt unit cohesion, and exacerbate critical skill shortages,” stated Rachel Branaman, the head of the Modern Military Association of America, in an interview with the news outlet. She further noted that the experience lost due to the ban could take approximately 20 years and billions of dollars to recover.

Paulo Batista, an openly transgender analyst in the US Navy, expressed his opposition to the ban, cautioning that it would lead to significant disruptions throughout the entire US military.

“Removing 15,000 individuals like us means losing 15,000 leadership roles, each of us contributes crucially… If one of us is removed, others must step in to fill the gap. These positions may take months or even years to be adequately filled,” he stated to the news outlet.