Washington (AP) – Supreme Court On Tuesday, President Donald Trump's administration permitted the enactment of a Prohibition of military transgender individuals legal challenges progression.
The court deliberated on the dispute regarding policy that could disqualify transgender individuals from military service, potentially leading to the dismissal of skilled, decorated officers.
Three liberal justices on the court stated their intent to keep the policy on hold. Neither the majority nor the dissenting justices provided explanations for their votes, although this practice is typical in emergency appeals.
Shortly after beginning his second term in January, Trump took assertive steps to roll back transgender individuals’ rights. Among the Republican president’s measures was an executive order that questioned the sexual identity of transgender service members.
AP Audio: The Supreme Court permits Trump to impose a ban on transgender military members.
Associated Press Washington correspondent Sagar Meghani reports that the Supreme Court has taken action to temporarily allow transgender military bans.
In response, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegses issued a policy requiring military services to spend 30 days in February understanding how to locate and identify transgender service members for removal. These efforts were put on hold due to ongoing lawsuits.
“We don't have trans @dod anymore,” Hegses stated in a post on X after Tuesday's Supreme Court ruling. Earlier that day, before the court’s decision, Hegses remarked that his department had moved past nostalgia and weakness. “There are no more pronouns,” he mentioned at the Special Operations Forces Conference in Tampa. “There's no ‘guy in a dress.’ We're done with that.”
The Department of Defense indicated on Tuesday that officials are currently considering the next steps, although no immediate actions are anticipated.
Three federal judges opposed the ban.
On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Benjamin settled in Tacoma, Washington, after hearing from seven long-serving transgender soldiers who labeled the ban disgraceful and discriminatory, arguing that their dismissals would inflict lasting damage on their careers and reputations. Future service members have also initiated lawsuits.
Their legal representatives noted that individual service members challenging the ban have collectively earned over 70 medals across 115 years of service. The lead plaintiff is Emily Schilling, a naval commander with nearly 20 years of service, including as a combat pilot with 60 missions in the Iraq and Afghan wars.
The Trump administration did not clarify why transgender individuals, who have served openly for the past four years without incidents, should suddenly face a ban, Judge Settle wrote. Settle is a Republican appointee from President George W. Bush and previously served as a U.S. Army judge advocate.
Settle imposed a nationwide hold on the policy, which was subsequently challenged in the federal court of appeals. The Justice Department then escalated the matter to the Supreme Court.
The policy has also faced hurdles from federal judges in the nation’s capital, though a ruling was temporarily stayed by a federal appeals court that heard the case last month. The three-judge panel, including two jurists appointed by Trump during his first term, appeared supportive of the administration’s stance.
In a more limited ruling, judges in New Jersey barred the Air Force from expelling two transgender men, expressing that their separations have had repercussions that financial settlements could not rectify, stating that these dismissals have caused enduring damage to their careers.
The LGBTQ rights organizations Lambda Legal and the Human Rights Campaign Foundation described the Supreme Court’s decision as a devastating setback for dedicated and highly qualified service members.
“By permitting this discriminatory ban to be enforced while the challenge proceeds, the court has temporarily sanctioned policies that do not promote military readiness and reflect bias: transgender individuals meet the same standards and embody the same value as anyone serving,” they asserted.
The Federal Court of Appeals in San Francisco will hear the administration’s appeal, a process expected to unfold over several months. Throughout this period, the transgender ban will remain in effect due to the Supreme Court’s order.
In 2016, under President Barack Obama, Pentagon policies permitted transgender individuals to serve openly in the military. During Trump’s first term, Republicans moved to implement a ban on transgender service members, allowing exceptions only for those already transitioning under the more permissive guidelines in effect during Obama’s administration.
The Supreme Court has allowed the ban to take effect. Democrat Joe Biden repealed it upon taking office.
The Department of Defense’s proposed rules offer no exceptions.
Trump’s initial term policies and those from his new term “will be virtually indistinguishable,” Attorney General D. John Sauer told the judge; however, attorneys for the service members disputing the ban disagreed.
Thousands of transgender individuals serve in the military, accounting for less than 1% of the 2.1 million service members.
In February, the Secretary of Defense stated that he estimates around 4,200 active-duty, National Guard, and reserve personnel have been diagnosed with gender dysphoria.
An anonymous official, discussing personnel matters, indicated that between 2015 and 2024, the total costs for psychotherapy, gender-affirming hormone therapy, gender-affirming surgeries, and other treatments for service members will be approximately $52 million.
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Associated Press Writer Lolita C. Baldor contributed to this report.