Tag Archives: gender dysphoria

In Clever Move, President Trump Rescinds Military Transgender Ban

Though it isn’t being reported this way, last Friday President Trump actually rescinded the ban he previously implemented on transgenders in the military last August.  The new memorandum (PDF) explicitly withdrew his prior policy:

I hereby revoke my memorandum of August 25, 2017, “Military Service by Transgender Individuals,” and any other directive I may have made with respect to military service by transgender individuals.

The new memo did not institute a new presidential directive.  Rather, the President deferred to the Department of Defense — that is, the “independent judgment” of the DoD — with regard to its policies.  He said [emphasis added]:

These [DoD-produced] documents set forth the policies on this issue that the Secretary of Defense, in the exercise of his independent judgment, has concluded should be adopted by the Department of Defense.

It’s a clever move.  Lawsuits and Read more

Military Service: Patriotism Does Not Cover a Multitude of Sins

Writing at the Washington Post, columnist Philip Bump called out what he believed was a contradiction between President Trump’s praise for military unity and his prior decision to renew the ban on transgender service:

“We must love each other, show affection for each other, and unite together in condemnation of hatred, bigotry and violence,” [Trump] said then. “We must discover the bonds of love and loyalty that bring us together as Americans.”

Standing in front of an audience of members of the military, he cited their service as exemplary in that regard.

It was hard, though, to ignore an asterisk that seemed to be lingering over Trump’s words: His tweets last month about his plan to ban transgender troops from serving.

From President Trump’s statement, Bump draws an incorrect conclusion [emphasis added]:  Read more