U.S. district court blocks Trump's transgender troop ban


A judge in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Monday blocked President Trump's August memo directing the Pentagon to implement a ban on transgender troops, The Associated Press reports. Trump's order, which came as a surprise in July, demanded that the Defense Department stop accepting openly transgender recruits but allowed Pentagon leadership to decide whether active transgender personnel could continue in their roles.
Monday's ruling means that the ban cannot be enforced as it is debated in courts: "U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly wrote Monday that transgender members of the military who had sued over the change were likely to win their lawsuit and barred the Trump administration from reversing course," AP writes.
The judge did, however, deny the plaintiffs' motion to lift the ban on funds for gender reassignment surgery, The Hill reports. Trump's memo prohibited federal spending on sex-reassignment surgeries unless they are needed "to protect the health of an individual who has already begun a course of treatment to reassign his or her sex."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Over the summer, Trump's ban was met by heavy criticism, including from Republicans and veterans. "Any American who meets current medical and readiness standards should be allowed to continue serving ... regardless of their gender identity," said Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) at the time.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
-
Hamas frees US hostage in deal sidelining Israel
speed read Edan Alexander, a 21-year-old soldier, was the final living US citizen held by the militant group
-
White Afrikaners land in US as Trump-declared refugees
speed read An exception was made to Trump's near-total ban on admitting refugees for the white South Africans
-
Qatar luxury jet gift clouds Trump trip to Mideast
speed read Qatar is said to be presenting Trump with a $400 million plane, which would be among the biggest foreign gifts ever received by the US government
-
Trump taps Fox News' Pirro for DC attorney post
speed read The president has named Fox News host Jeanine Pirro to be the top federal prosecutor for Washington, replacing acting US Attorney Ed Martin
-
Trump, UK's Starmer outline first post-tariff deal
speed read President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Kier Starmer struck a 'historic' agreement to eliminate some of the former's imposed tariffs
-
Fed leaves rates unchanged as Powell warns on tariffs
speed read The Federal Reserve says the risks of higher inflation and unemployment are increasing under Trump's tariffs
-
Denmark to grill US envoy on Greenland spying report
speed read The Trump administration ramped up spying on Greenland, says reporting by The Wall Street Journal
-
Supreme Court allows transgender troop ban
speed read The US Supreme Court will let the Trump administration begin executing its ban on transgender military service members