| Presidential Memorandum for the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Homeland Security | |
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| Signed by | Donald Trump on August 25, 2017 |
|---|---|
| Federal Register details | |
| Federal Register document number | 2017-18544 |
| Publication date | August 30, 2017 |
| Document citation | 41319 |
| Summary | |
| Military service by transgender individuals | |
The Presidential Memorandum on Military Service by Transgender Individuals, officially the Presidential Memorandum for the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Homeland Security, is the 27th presidential memorandum signed by U.S. President Donald Trump on August 25, 2017. The intent was to prevent transgender people from serving in the U.S. military, on the basis that they would be a financial burden due to sex reassignment procedures and associated costs. Federal courts delayed the implementation of this rule by issuing four injunctions. On January 22, 2019, however, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration's ban to take effect.[1]
On October 30, 2017, in the case of Jane Doe v. Trump, Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly granted the plaintiffs a preliminary injunction on the provisions of the memorandum prohibiting open military service and enlistment of transgender people.[2] On November 21, 2017, in the case of Stone v. Trump, Judge Marvin J. Garbis granted the plaintiffs a preliminary injunction on the entirety of the Presidential Memorandum for the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Homeland Security.[3] Also that day, the United States Department of Justice appealed the preliminary injunction in the case of Jane Doe v. Trump.[4] The Pentagon's six-month delay on accession of transgender individuals into military service expired January 1, 2018.[5]
The original policy, which this Memorandum replaced, had been blocked in 2017 (Jane Doe v. Trump), when it was ruled that as far as could be seen, "all of the reasons proffered by the president for excluding transgender individuals from the military in this case were not merely unsupported, but were actually contradicted by the studies, conclusions and judgment of the military itself".[6][7] The 2018 Memorandum and policy superseding this Memorandum was itself stayed on 13 April 2018 when a Washington court ruled in Karnoski vs. Trump (Western District of Washington), that the 2018 Memorandum essentially repeated the same issues as its predecessor order from 2017, that transgender service members (and transgender individuals as a class) were a protected class entitled to strict scrutiny of adverse laws (or at worst, a quasi-suspect class), and ordered that matter continue to a full trial hearing on the legality of the proposed policy.[8]
On January 25, 2021, Trump's successor Joe Biden signed an executive order which revoked the transgender military ban.[9]
- ^ Stohr, Greg (22 January 2019). "Supreme Court Lets Trump's Transgender Military Ban Take Effect". Bloomberg. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
NYT-171030was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
Federal judge says Trump administration can’t stop funding sex-reassignment surgery for military memberswas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ DOJ appeals ruling against Trump’s transgender military ban
- ^ Federal Judge Blocks Trump’s Trans Troops Ban, Calling It Inexplicable and Unjustified
- ^ "Federal court blocks Trump's ban on transgender people in the military". Los Angeles Times. 30 October 2017.
- ^ Doe v Trump, 30 October 2017, District Court for Columbia, memorandum opinion
- ^ Multiple sources:
- "Judge blocks enforcement of transgender military ban". 30 October 2017.
- "Constitutional Law Prof Blog: Another District Judge Issues Preliminary Injunction Against Transgender Military Ban". December 2017.
- "Constitutional Law Prof Blog: District Judge Holds Transgender Military Ban Subject to Strict Scrutiny". April 2018.
- District Court, West District Washington, Karnoski v Trump, 13 April 2018
- ^ Baldor, Lolita C.; Miller, Zeke (January 25, 2020). "Biden reverses Trump ban on transgender people in military". Associated Press. Retrieved January 25, 2020.