There will be ‘no modifications’ to the US military’s transgender policy, the chairman of the joint chiefs said.
Marine General Joe Dunford had said, in a message to the top military officers, the armed forces will continue to ‘treat all of our personnel with respect’.
Yesterday President Donald Trump announced a ban on transgender people serving ‘in any capacity’.
The Pentagon or senior military officers were not aware of the announcement.
‘Our military must be focused on decisive and overwhelming victory and cannot be burdened with the tremendous medical costs and disruption that transgender in the military would entail,’ Trump said on Twitter.
But it turns out orders given on social media may have less impact than he wanted.
‘I know there are questions about yesterday’s announcement on the transgender policy by the President,’ Dunford wrote in the message.
‘There will be no modifications to the current policy until the President’s direction has been received by the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary has issued implementation guidance.’
‘In the meantime, we will continue to treat all of our personnel with respect.’
He added: ‘In the meantime, we will continue to treat all of our personnel with respect. As importantly, given the current fight and the challenges we face, we will all remain focused on accomplishing our assigned missions.’
Around 12,000 transgender individuals currently serve in the US military. In addition, approximately 134,400 trans adults are military veterans or retirees. Thus, approximately 150,000 trans adults have served in the US Armed Forces or are currently on active duty.
Celebrities, politicians and other public figures have spoken out against the decision. Also, transgender veterans and current serving members of the military have spoken out against the Commander in Chief.
