LGBT groups suing Trump

NEW YORK (AP) — Two LGBT-rights organizations filed a lawsuit in federal court Wednesday challenging President Donald Trump’s tweets declaring he wants a ban on transgender people serving in the military.

The suit was filed in U.S. District Court in Washington on behalf of five transgender service members with nearly 60 years of combined military service.

Transgender people have been allowed to service openly in the military since June 2016. Trump, in a series of tweets on July 26, announced that he planned to end that policy.

The government “will not accept or allow transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. military,” he tweeted, contending that their service entailed “tremendous medical costs and disruption.”

The lawsuit, filed by GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) and the National Center for Lesbian Rights, says such a ban is unconstitutional, denying transgender service members equal protection and due process.

Lawyers handling the lawsuit said they hoped the court would move swiftly to prevent a ban from taking effect, given the uncertainty that transgender service members now face in regard to their livelihoods and retirement benefits.

“The damage is happening now,” said Jennifer Levi, Director of GLAD’s Transgender Rights Project. “These service members were told in June 2016 they could come out and continue to openly serve.”

The five plaintiffs — who were not identified in the lawsuit — serve in the Air Force, the Coast Guard and the Army. Their years of service range from three years to two decades, and include tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Named in the suit, along with Trump, are Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and other national security officials.