U.S. Senate Armed Forces Committee Chairman John McCain on Wednesday said President Donald Trump’s announcement barring transgender individuals from the U.S. military was “unclear” and inappropriate given an ongoing Pentagon study on the issue.
“I do not believe that any new policy decision is appropriate until that study is complete and thoroughly reviewed by the Secretary of Defense, our military leadership, and the Congress,” McCain said in a statement, adding that U.S. defense officials had already decided that currently serving transgender troops could remain in the military.
President Donald Trump had said in a tweet on Wednesday that he would not permit transgender people to serve in the U.S. military, citing “tremendous medical costs and disruption,” an action condemned by critics as “raw prejudice” and a political stunt.
It was not the first time Trump had targeted transgender people since taking office in January. The Republican president in February rescinded protections for transgender students put in place by his predecessor, Democrat Barack Obama, that had let them use bathrooms corresponding with their gender identity.
“After consultation with my Generals and military experts, please be advised that the United States Government will not accept or allow transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. Military,” Trump wrote in a series of Twitter posts.
“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,” the Republican president wrote.
Trump’s action appeared to halt years of efforts to eliminate barriers to military service based on sexual orientation. The Pentagon last year under Obama announced that it was ending its ban on transgender people serving openly in the military, with officials calling the prohibition outdated.
The Defense Department on Wednesday referred all questions about Trump’s decision to the White House. “We will provide revised guidance to the department in the near future,” Defense Department spokesman Navy Captain Jeff Davis said.
