Pentagon Orders Discharge of Transgenders

February 27, 2025 MeighTimbol News 0
The observance of Pride Month, celebrated every June, was first recognized by the Department of Defense in June 2012. It is a time when the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community come together to celebrate love and authenticity. Maj. Rachel Jones is an example of this, serving openly as a transgender female Soldier. Jones is the U.S. Army Sustainment Command’s Cyber Division chief, G6 (Information Management). (Sarah Patterson)
REDSTATE | Published February 27, 2025

The Department of Defense has issued new guidance ordering the military services to begin the process of discharging transgender members of the Armed Forces in 30 days. The new policy recognizes only two sexes; it requires members of the Armed Forces to adhere to the physical fitness and grooming standards of their biological sex. Any attempt at chemically or surgically changing sex makes the person unsuitable for military service. If a person had, at some point, been transgender they can be retained if they “demonstrate “36 consecutive months of stability” in their sex with no “clinically significant distress or impairment” if they can prove they have “never attempted to transition to any sex other than their sex” and if they are willing to adhere to “all applicable standards” relating to their sex.”

f. The Department only recognizes two sexes: male and female. An individual’s sex is immutable, unchanging during a person’s life. All Service members will only serve in accordance with their sex, defined in Executive Order 14168, “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” as “an individual’s immutable biological classification as either male or female.”

g. Where a standard, requirement, or policy depends on whether the individual is a male or female ( e.g., medical fitness for duty, physical fitness and body fat standards; berthing, bathroom, and shower facilities; and uniform and grooming standards), all persons will be subject to the standard, requirement, or policy associated with their sex.

h. Pronoun usage when referring to Service members must reflect a Service member’s sex. In keeping with good order and discipline, salutations ( e.g., addressing a senior officer as “Sir” or “Ma’am”) must also reflect an individual’s sex.

The memo reiterates an earlier policy that barred transgender individuals from enlisting; see SecDef Hegseth Orders an End to Enlisting Transgenders – RedState.

Even though the precursor to this policy is in litigation (see DOJ Files Misconduct Complaint Against Hostile and Biased Judge Overseeing the Military Transgender Case – RedState), it seems unlikely to be successful. Similar legal histrionics followed Trump’s ban on transgenders in the military in 2017. That ban was upheld by the Supreme Court in a 2019 decision (see Supreme Court Allows Trump Administration to Restrict Transgender Service in Military While Lawsuits Are Ongoing – RedState) before Joe Biden reversed the policy in 2021; see Opinion: Defense Secretary Austin Plays Politics Right out of the Gate – RedState.

The ban on transgenders is long overdue. If a transgender has progressed beyond the point of Klinger-esque crossdressing, they probably are not deployable because of the psychiatric and medical care they need to continue their attempt to transition from something they are into something they aren’t. In context, a kid with braces can’t enlist. A kid who has taken Adderall or Ritalin in the previous three years can’t enlist. And yet we not only enlisted transgenders, we allowed them to have surgery at government expense.

Mirroring the experience of young women in varsity athletics, men “transitioning” to women were bunked with military women; see Report: Navy Says Sailors Can Use Whichever Locker Room Suits Their Gender Identity – RedState and Report: The Army Will Force Female Soldiers to Shower With Biological Males – RedState.

Finally, the entire project was corrosive of military discipline. Guidance was issued on addressing a 6-2, 220-pound bearded officer wearing a skirt (A US Navy That Instructs on Pronouns Is a Navy Unprepared to Fight a War – RedState). Anecdotally, the fear of being accused of being a “transphobe” frequently let transgenders exhibit behavior and performance that would get a regular soldier punished.

The new guidance clears the decks, so to speak, for the military to toss aside this modern-day version of Robert S. McNamara’s Project 100,000 and get back to the business of training to win wars.

 

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SOURCE: www.redstate.com

RELATED: Transgender US service members to be removed from military, Pentagon memo shows

A demonstrator holds a trans flag during a rally in support of trans youth at Seattle Children’s hospital in Seattle, Washington, U.S. February 8, 2025. REUTERS/David Ryder/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
REUTERS | Published February 27, 2025
WASHINGTON, Feb 26 (Reuters) – Transgender service members will be separated from the U.S. military unless they receive an exemption, according to a Pentagon memo filed in court on Wednesday, essentially banning them from joining or serving in the military.
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The move, which goes further than restrictions President Donald Trump placed on transgender service members during his first administration, was described as unprecedented by advocates.

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Trump signed an executive order last month that took aim at transgender troops in a personal way – at one point saying that a man identifying as a woman was “not consistent with the humility and selflessness required of a service member.”
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This month, the Pentagon had said that the U.S. military will no longer allow transgender individuals to join and will stop performing or facilitating procedures associated with gender transition for service members.

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Wednesday’s late-evening memo expands the ban to currently serving members of the military.
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The memo said that the Pentagon must create a procedure to identify troops who are transgender within 30 days and then within 30 days of that, must start to discharge them from the military.
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“It is the policy of the United States Government to establish high standards for service member readiness, lethality, cohesion, honesty, humility, uniformity, and integrity,” said the memo, dated February 26.

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“This policy is inconsistent with the medical, surgical, and mental health constraints on individuals with gender dysphoria or who have a current diagnosis or history of, or exhibit symptoms consistent with, gender dysphoria,” it added.
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There is no requirement for transgender troops to self identify and the Pentagon doesn’t have a precise number.
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The Pentagon said waivers would be granted only “provided there is a compelling government interest in retaining the service member that directly supports warfighting capabilities.”

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It added that for a waiver, troops must also be able to meet a number of criteria, including that the service member “demonstrates 36 consecutive months of stability in the service member’s sex without clinically significant distress.”
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During his first term, Trump announced that he would ban transgender people from serving in the military. He didn’t fully follow through, freezing their recruitment while allowing serving personnel to remain.
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“The scope and severity of this ban is unprecedented. It is a complete purge of all transgender individuals from military service,” said Shannon Minter of the National Center For Lesbian Rights (NCLR).
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The memo was filed in court as part of an lawsuit brought by NCLR and GLAD Law. The suit challenges the constitutionality of the January executive order and argues that it violates the equal protection component of the Fifth Amendment.
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This month, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had said people with gender dysphoria already in the military would be “treated with dignity and respect.”
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The military has about 1.3 million active-duty personnel, according to Department of Defense data. Although transgender rights advocates say there are as many as 15,000 transgender service members, officials say the number is in the low thousands.
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A poll from Gallup published this month said 58% of Americans favored allowing openly transgender individuals serving in the military, but the support had declined from 71% in 2019.
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SOURCE: www.reuters.com

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