Around 15000 transgenders, some of whom are in “very senior positions”, would be driven out of their posts in the US Military if President-elect Donald Trump signs an executive order, which he is very likely to do, a report revealed on Monday.
According to the report by The Sunday Times, transgenders would be medically discharged, which means they would be “unfit” to serve. The order would come on Trump’s first day at the White House — January 20, stated the report.
“These people will be forced out at a time when the military can’t recruit enough people,” a source familiar with Trump’s plans said. “Only the Marine Corps is hitting its numbers for recruitment and some people who will be affected are in very senior positions,” The Sunday Times quoted a source as saying.
When President Joe Biden had lifted Trump’s ban on transgenders in the military, around 2,200 service personnel were diagnosed with gender dysphoria, and several other personnel identified as a different gender than what they were born, the report said.
Donald Trump’s view on transgenders
“Kamala is for they/them. Trump is for you,” was the message of a widely aired ad for Donald Trump’ 2024 campaign.
Two months into his first term in 2017, president Trump reversed Obama-era federal protections for transgender students, which required public schools to allow them to use bathrooms corresponding to their gender identities.
‘Worst president on LGBTQ issues…’
In 2019, the Donald Trump administration proposed a rule by the Department of Health and Human Services that would allow faith-based foster care and adoption agencies to continue receiving federal funding while also permitting them to exclude LGBTQ+ parents.
In response to these actions, Alphonso David, president of the Human Rights Campaign, called Trump “the worst president on LGBTQ issues ever,” reported Independent.
In November 2024, Trump‘s Vice President-elect, JD Vance, sparked controversy with his remarks about transgender and nonbinary people, suggesting that some white children are encouraged to “become” trans in order to secure college admissions into Ivy League schools. These comments led to widespread backlash and criticism.
