Transgender ban shocks military
UNITED STATES: The Pentagon was blindsided by US President Donald Trump’s announcement that his administration will block transgender people from serving in the US military, and the Defence Department has no idea yet how it will affect troops already serving.
The president’s declaration on Twitter yesterday, saying transgender people will not be allowed to serve ‘‘in any capacity’’, came a year after the Defence Department under former president Barack Obama lifted its ban on transgender troops serving openly.
Neither the Pentagon nor the White House could answer how the Trump administration intends to implement such a ban announced while Defence Secretary Jim Mattis was on vacation - or what it means for the thousands of transgender people already serving in the military.
The sudden blanket ban on all transgender troops seemed to take everyone by surprise with its scope. Lawmakers had been debating funding for medical care for transgender troops, and military leaders had been analysing the impact of allowing transgender recruits. But no-one had been debating a reversal of the existing policy.
Trump’s language indicated that those currently serving could be forced out. LGBT advocates condemned this as a betrayal, after transgender troops were encouraged to identify themselves and serve openly after last year’s policy change. Military LGBT groups and civil rights groups have threatened to sue if troops are not allowed to serve based on their gender identity.
The reaction was swift, and criticism came from both Republicans and Democrats.
Trump’s tweet ‘‘is yet another example of why major policy announcements should not be made via Twitter’’, said Republican Arizona Senator John Mccain, who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee.
Mccain, who came to Trump’s aid on Wednesday by returning to Washington after his cancer diagnosis to cast a critical healthcare vote, said any military personnel policy change should only come after a study had been ‘‘thoroughly reviewed by the secretary of defence, our military leadership, and the Congress’’.
‘‘There is no reason to force service members who are able to fight, train and deploy to leave the military - regardless of their gender identity,’’ he said.
The president’s tweets sent the Pentagon, which was clearly not prepared to roll out any new guidance, scrambling. A few hours after being caught off guard by the announcement, a spokesman would only say that the military would ‘‘work closely with the White House to address the new guidance provided by the commander in chief’’, which could be expected ‘‘in the near future’’.
Asked what would happen to transgender members of the military currently deployed to war zones, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders could not answer. She insisted the move had been based on a ‘‘military decision’’, but did not explain how it would be implemented or how it would affect troops on active duty.
Trump informed Mattis of his decision on Wednesday, Sanders said. The Pentagon would not say whether the Pentagon chief agreed with it.
There are between 1320 and 6630 transgender individuals on active duty, about 0.05 per cent of the US military’s total active force, according to a Rand Corporation analysis. Other reviews put that number as high as 15,000. Last year the Defence Department commissioned an extensive Rand study that concluded that letting transgender people serve openly would have a ‘‘minimal impact’’ on both military readiness and healthcare costs. - TNS