The Obama Administration decided to permit individuals who identify as transgender to serve in the military—without weighing the cost to taxpayers for ongoing medical care, impact to military readiness, and the affect on privacy or fairness in the troops.
But in July 2017, President Trump announced a change in this policy. You joined with us to send thousands of thank-you notes to the President for making this critical change.
Trump’s Department of Defense committed to extensively studying the impact that individuals identifying as transgender would have on the military. In February 2018, they released a comprehensive report, concluding that transgender military service would cause harm to:
- Military readiness due to the extensive medical care required by transitioning individuals;
- Privacy and fairness for the troops, particularly female servicemembers; and
- Taxpayers due to the medical costs for serving transitioning Service members is nearly 300% percentthe medical costs of an individual without these concerns.
The thorough report supported President Trump’s conclusion to not allow transitioning individuals to serve in the armed forces. The Department of Defense wrote that 71% of Americans are disqualified from service and “transgender persons with gender dysphoria are no less valued members of our Nation than all other categories of persons who are disqualified from military service.”
Of course, President Trump’s and his Department of Defense’s decision has been challenged in multiple lawsuits. But in encouraging breaking news today, the Supreme Court ruled that the President’s policy to not permit transitioning individuals to serve in the military could go into effect while the cases proceed through the courts.
The two newest justices, Justice Gorsuch and Justice Kavanaugh, joined Justices Roberts, Alito, and Thomas in allowing the Trump decision to go into effect.
We are thankful to you in the many different ways you’ve joined in encouraging the President and the Department of Defense to stand strong on this issue. You have made a difference!
But, there are many ways Obama-type transgender policies are still causing harm to children in schools, state laws and regulations, women’s privacy and safety, religious freedom, and even women’s shelters. Learn more here. Please continue to partner with Family Policy Alliance and our state allies as we work to restore common sense and safety in states and local communities across the country!
