Donald Trump to discharge all 15,000 transgender personnel from US military
An act would "medically discharge" around 15,000 active personnel as unfit to serve, despite a recruitment crisis within the US's military forces, according to reports
By Dale Fox
US President-elect Donald Trump is planning to discharge all service transgender members of the US military when he returns to the White House, according to reports.
The Times reported that Trump will implement an executive order on his first day in office that would “medically discharge” around 15,000 active service members as unfit to serve, while also banning future transgender enlistments.
The proposed move comes at a time when the US military is facing significant recruitment challenges, with most branches falling short of their targets.
Rachel Branaman, executive director of the Modern Military Association of America, argued that such a ban would “undermine the readiness of the military” and deepen its recruitment crisis.
Trump’s nominee for secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, has previously supported the measure. Hegseth, a former National Guard major and Fox News host, has criticised the military’s focus on diversity and inclusion.
‘Woke’ military leaders responsible for US military downturn – Trump’s nominee for secretary of defense Pete Hegseth
Writing in his latest book The War on Warriors: Behind the Betrayal of the Men Who Keep Us Free, he says “woke” military leaders have led to “America’s white sons and daughters … walking away, and who can blame them.”
The proposed policy would go further than the 2017 transgender military ban enacted during Trump’s first term. That order barred new enlistments but allowed those already serving to remain in their roles.
US President Biden overturned the ban in 2021, but the new measure would reportedly lead to the discharge of all transgender personnel, regardless of their tenure.
A US Air Force non-commissioned officer, speaking anonymously to The Times, highlighted the loss of expertise that such a move would create. “There are very few members of my career field with this experience, and in the event of a large-scale contingency, it would be difficult to replace the level of experience that I bring to the table,” they said.
Since Trump’s re-election as president, there have already been questioned raised on what this could mean for LGBTQ+ rights. LGBTQ+ crisis helplines in the US have seen a dramatic rise in calls.
Organisations like the Rainbow Youth Project and The Trevor Project have been inundated with messages from LGBTQ+ individuals, parents, and allies deeply concerned about the future, according to The Washington Post.