Trump Bows to Religious Right, Bans Trans Troops -- pushed by Vice President Pence [View all]

[DonViejo]

Insiders say the move—pushed by Vice President Pence—was designed to achieve a political purpose, not an explicitly military one.

ASAWIN SUEBSAENG
KIMBERLY DOZIER
SPENCER ACKERMAN
EMMA KERR

07.26.17 12:33 PM ET

On the anniversary of Harry S. Truman’s desegregation of the military, President Donald Trump on Wednesday abruptly reversed the move to openly integrate trans service members. The announcement came in the form of a tweeted edict that was designed to appeal to the religious hard right, White House officials told The Daily Beast.

Trump claimed in his tweets that his decision was made “after consultation with my Generals and military experts.” Yet the announcement took some staff in the Pentagon, White House, and Capitol Hill by surprise. Trump also cited “tremendous medical costs and disruption that transgender in the military would entail”—an argument undercut by the most reliable studies on the subject.

While Trump tweeted that he would no longer allow “transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. Military,” he did not specifically say what would happen to the estimated 4,000 transgender troops now serving openly in the active-duty military after the Obama administration lifted the ban on such service in 2016. Last month, Pentagon chief Jim Mattis had delayed a decision to allow transgender recruits.

It was unclear Wednesday if Trump’s stance against trans service “in any capacity” indicates that the few thousand out trans service members would be immediately forced to separate from the military.

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http://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-bows-to-religious-right-bans-trans-troops