Trump to kick transgender troops from military as Pete Hegseth’s cabinet nomination in doubt: Live updates
Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order that would remove transgender service members from the US military as soon as his first day in office.
The president-elect is reportedly preparing to issue an order following his inauguration on January 20 that would effectively ban trans people from serving – and then medically discharge the thousands of currently serving trans service members of the armed forces.
Trump declared that the US would no longer “accept or allow” trans people in the military during his first term, citing “tremendous medical costs and disruption” and the ban took effect in 2019 but was reversed by Joe Biden.
Trump is now understood to be planning to reinstate it.
Meanwhile, Pete Hegseth, his controversial nominee for defense secretary, is facing further questions about his suitability for the role given his past comments about America’s international allies, with quotes from the former Fox weekend anchor’s recent book American Crusade circulating in which he criticizes Nato and the UN and argues US troops should not be bound by the Geneva conventions.
Other Trump nominees likewise expected to face rocky confirmation hearings before the Senate include Tulsi Gabbard and Robert F Kennedy Jr.
