Mike Pence, Tony Perkins, Ryan Anderson helped craft report on Trump's trans military ban
Wed. March 28, 2018 5:24 AM by Carlos Santoscoy
Washington, D.C. -
According to an article published Monday, Vice President Mike Pence played a leading role in the creation of a report in support of President Donald Trump's transgender military ban.
In a memo issued late Friday, Trump announced that transgender people "with a history or diagnosis of gender dysphoria" are "disqualified from military service except under certain limited circumstances." The ban does not apply to the estimated 8,980 transgender people currently serving in the armed forces.
After Trump first announced the ban in July on Twitter and ordered the Pentagon to implement it, LGBT rights groups filed four legal challenges to banning transgender troops. In each case, a judge has blocked implementation of the ban. The Pentagon has said it will comply with the orders.
Friday's memo was accompanied by a report on "military service by transgender persons."
According to Slate's Mark Joseph Stern, Pence "played a leading role in the creation of this report," along with Ryan T. Anderson and Tony Perkins.
Perkins helms the Christian conservative Family Research Council (FRC), which has been labeled a "hate group" by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) for its vocal opposition to LGBT rights. Perkins in July said that FRC worked with the White House on crafting the ban. The following month, Foreign Policy reported that FRC was lobbying Congress on a bill that sought to prohibit the Pentagon from funding "medical treatment related to gender transition."
In October, Perkins said that openly gay, lesbian and transgender troops create "moral confusion" that leads to sexual harassment in the military.
Trump has praised Perkins as "a tremendous guy."
Anderson of the conservative Heritage Foundation is also a vocal opponent of LGBT rights. He is the author of Truth Overruled: The Future of Marriage and Religious Freedom, in which he argues against marriage rights for gay and lesbian couples, and When Harry Became Sally, in which he argues that transgender individuals are mentally ill.
The report claims that transgender service members "undermine readiness," "erode reasonable expectations of privacy," and that their medical needs "impose disproportionate costs" on the military.
"Given its authors," Stern wrote, "the Trump report's conclusions are unsurprising."
Stern, however, concludes that Trump's ban is not likely to take effect because it's "plainly unconstitutional."
In a memo issued late Friday, Trump announced that transgender people "with a history or diagnosis of gender dysphoria" are "disqualified from military service except under certain limited circumstances." The ban does not apply to the estimated 8,980 transgender people currently serving in the armed forces.
After Trump first announced the ban in July on Twitter and ordered the Pentagon to implement it, LGBT rights groups filed four legal challenges to banning transgender troops. In each case, a judge has blocked implementation of the ban. The Pentagon has said it will comply with the orders.
Friday's memo was accompanied by a report on "military service by transgender persons."
According to Slate's Mark Joseph Stern, Pence "played a leading role in the creation of this report," along with Ryan T. Anderson and Tony Perkins.
Perkins helms the Christian conservative Family Research Council (FRC), which has been labeled a "hate group" by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) for its vocal opposition to LGBT rights. Perkins in July said that FRC worked with the White House on crafting the ban. The following month, Foreign Policy reported that FRC was lobbying Congress on a bill that sought to prohibit the Pentagon from funding "medical treatment related to gender transition."
In October, Perkins said that openly gay, lesbian and transgender troops create "moral confusion" that leads to sexual harassment in the military.
Trump has praised Perkins as "a tremendous guy."
Anderson of the conservative Heritage Foundation is also a vocal opponent of LGBT rights. He is the author of Truth Overruled: The Future of Marriage and Religious Freedom, in which he argues against marriage rights for gay and lesbian couples, and When Harry Became Sally, in which he argues that transgender individuals are mentally ill.
The report claims that transgender service members "undermine readiness," "erode reasonable expectations of privacy," and that their medical needs "impose disproportionate costs" on the military.
"Given its authors," Stern wrote, "the Trump report's conclusions are unsurprising."
Stern, however, concludes that Trump's ban is not likely to take effect because it's "plainly unconstitutional."
Article provided in partnership with On Top Magazine