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A new bill introduced in the House of Representatives aims to permanently codify President Donald Trump’s ban on transgender individuals serving in the U.S. military.
The legislation, put forward by Rep. Barry Moore, R-Ala., seeks to enshrine into law the president’s executive order that prohibits transgender individuals from serving in the Armed Forces.
“What we had with this trans movement was we had a bunch of people coming in, signing a six-year contract, and then starting the surgeries and starting the hormone replacements … they weren’t fit for service, so they spent four or five years on the taxpayer’s dime getting these surgeries and these chemicals and all this stuff, and then by the time they could really actually serve, they were ready to get out,” Moore told Fox News Digital this week.
“I think in many ways the taxpayers get a much bigger bang for their buck, No. 1,” said Moore, a veteran. “And No. 2, I think that if I’m looking at joining, these guys are really focused on fighting, and if I’m in the foxhole with these guys, these are people I’ve trained with, they’re capable. You’ve got to have that on a battlefield.”
Supporters of the new bill argue that the presence of individuals with gender dysphoria may impact unit cohesion, increase healthcare costs and distract from mission priorities. The bill includes a provision allowing waivers in cases deemed essential to national security.
The controversy follows the president’s executive order on Jan. 27 titled “Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness.”
“For the sake of our Nation and the patriotic Americans who volunteer to serve it, military service must be reserved for those mentally and physically fit for duty,” the order reads.
“The Armed Forces must adhere to high mental and physical health standards to ensure our military can deploy, fight, and win, including in austere conditions and without the benefit of routine medical treatment or special provisions,” it adds.
The Supreme Court later ruled in favor of the Trump administration’s transgender military ban, with efforts now underway to implement the new policy.
