US judge halts Trump's ban on transgender individuals in the military
A US federal judge has issued a ruling that blocks the enforcement of President Donald Trump’s executive order that prohibits transgender individuals from serving in the military. The order, which Trump signed just a week into his presidency...
TroibNews 
A US federal judge has issued a ruling that blocks the enforcement of President Donald Trump’s executive order that prohibits transgender individuals from serving in the military.
The order, which Trump signed just a week into his presidency in January, barred transgender individuals from enlisting and mandated the Department of Defense to identify and dismiss any service members with “a current diagnosis or history of, or exhibit symptoms consistent with, gender dysphoria.”
US District Judge Ana Reyes, based in Washington, D.C., determined on Tuesday that the ban is “soaked in animus” and violates the equal protection clause by discriminating against individuals based on transgender status and sex.
Reyes stated, “Its language is unabashedly demeaning, its policy stigmatizes transgender persons as inherently unfit, and its conclusions bear no relation to fact.”
Appointed by former President Joe Biden, Reyes has put a temporary hold on her preliminary injunction until Friday to allow the Justice Department the opportunity to appeal her decision in the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
She emphasized that the government “could have crafted a policy that balances the Nation’s need for a prepared military and Americans’ right to equal protection” and “they still can," but she asserted, “The Military Ban, however, is not that policy. The Court therefore must act to uphold the equal protection rights that the military defends every day.”
A spokesperson for the Justice Department criticized Reyes’ ruling, characterizing it as “the latest example of an activist judge attempting to seize power at the expense of the American people who overwhelmingly voted to elect President Trump.” The spokesperson added, “The Department of Justice has vigorously defended President Trump’s executive actions, including the Defending Women Executive Order, and will continue to do so.”
The legal action aimed at blocking Trump’s executive order was initiated by a group of active-duty transgender service members along with six individuals seeking to enlist, who argued that the policy is “unconstitutional.”
Additionally, a senior US defense official informed the Associated Press last month that approximately 4,200 US troops currently serving in the Army, National Guard, and reserves have been diagnosed with gender dysphoria.
Ramin Sohrabi contributed to this article for TROIB News
The order, which Trump signed just a week into his presidency in January, barred transgender individuals from enlisting and mandated the Department of Defense to identify and dismiss any service members with “a current diagnosis or history of, or exhibit symptoms consistent with, gender dysphoria.”
US District Judge Ana Reyes, based in Washington, D.C., determined on Tuesday that the ban is “soaked in animus” and violates the equal protection clause by discriminating against individuals based on transgender status and sex.
Reyes stated, “Its language is unabashedly demeaning, its policy stigmatizes transgender persons as inherently unfit, and its conclusions bear no relation to fact.”
Appointed by former President Joe Biden, Reyes has put a temporary hold on her preliminary injunction until Friday to allow the Justice Department the opportunity to appeal her decision in the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
She emphasized that the government “could have crafted a policy that balances the Nation’s need for a prepared military and Americans’ right to equal protection” and “they still can," but she asserted, “The Military Ban, however, is not that policy. The Court therefore must act to uphold the equal protection rights that the military defends every day.”
A spokesperson for the Justice Department criticized Reyes’ ruling, characterizing it as “the latest example of an activist judge attempting to seize power at the expense of the American people who overwhelmingly voted to elect President Trump.” The spokesperson added, “The Department of Justice has vigorously defended President Trump’s executive actions, including the Defending Women Executive Order, and will continue to do so.”
The legal action aimed at blocking Trump’s executive order was initiated by a group of active-duty transgender service members along with six individuals seeking to enlist, who argued that the policy is “unconstitutional.”
Additionally, a senior US defense official informed the Associated Press last month that approximately 4,200 US troops currently serving in the Army, National Guard, and reserves have been diagnosed with gender dysphoria.
Ramin Sohrabi contributed to this article for TROIB News
