Photo: Alamy
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth won big this week in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, as judges ruled that the U.S. military may ban transgender individuals from serving in the rank and file.
The 2-1 ruling, issued on Tuesday, upholds the president’s policy on barring transgender men and women from serving in the military, following a lengthy court battle that involved the U.S. Supreme Court.
This spring, the Trump administration asked SCOTUS to allow the Department of War – then the Department of Defense – to implement its ban on transgenderism in the U.S. military, amid court review in the Ninth Circuit.
Ultimately, the highest court ruled in May to allow the enforcement of the ban as the litigation process continued through the lower courts.
Tuesday’s appeals decision comes after President Donald Trump signed an executive order nearly one year ago, demanding high physical and mental standards for military readiness and preparedness.
Per the president’s EO:
“The United States military has a clear mission: to protect the American people and our homeland as the world’s most lethal and effective fighting force. Success in this existential mission requires a singular focus on developing the requisite warrior ethos, and the pursuit of military excellence cannot be diluted to accommodate political agendas or other ideologies harmful to unit cohesion.”
The White House has taken the position that the condition of gender dysphoria and the treatments associated with it affect military members’ lethality and efficiency, per RSBN.
“As I’ve said, no more gender quotes, no more DEI, no more climate change, no more dudes in dresses,” Secretary Hegseth said earlier this year at the Fox News Patriot Awards. “We’re DONE with that shit.”