U.S. President Donald Trump has signed an executive order aimed at removing what he referred to as “transgender ideology” from the military, a move that could significantly impact LGBTQ rights.
In a series of actions related to the military, Trump also called for the creation of a U.S. version of Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system. Additionally, the orders included reinstating service members dismissed for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine and extending a broader government crackdown on diversity programs to the armed forces.
To a Republican congressional retreat in Miami, Trump stated, “To ensure that we have the most lethal fighting force in the world, we will get transgender ideology the hell out of our military.” Although Trump had previously vowed to reinstate a ban on transgender troops, the details of the new order remain unclear, as it has not yet been published. A White House official accompanying Trump described the order as “eliminating gender radicalism in the military.”
The orders came on the second week of Trump’s return to the White House and coincided with a welcome ceremony at the Pentagon for his newly confirmed defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, a military veteran and Fox News personality.
Transgender Americans have faced fluctuating policies regarding military service in recent years. While Democratic administrations have pushed for open service, Trump has consistently sought to bar transgender individuals from military service. Under the Obama administration in 2016, the U.S. military lifted the ban on transgender troops, allowing those already serving to do so openly and planning to accept new transgender recruits by mid-2017.
