Shaheen Condemns Trump Transgender Ban In Light of New Reports

(Washington, DC) – U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) issued the following statement in light of new reports that the White House plans to soon provide the Pentagon with guidance on implementation for a ban prohibiting transgender Americans from serving in the US military:

“The President’s actions to ban transgender Americans from serving their country is disgraceful. There are thousands of transgender Americans putting their lives on the line every day to defend our nation, people and liberty,” said Senator Shaheen. She continued, “Imposing a national defense policy that discriminates against American service members based on their gender identity violates their civil rights, undermines our military readiness and puts those affected by the ban, as well as their commanders, in a terrible position. As a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, I oppose this egregious policy and will work with my colleagues in Congress to push back on the Administration’s decision so we can protect all transgender service members proudly serving our nation.”

Senator Shaheen previously urged Defense Secretary Mattis to advise President Trump against implementing a ban on transgender service members in a letter led by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), which he announced over twitter in July. The letter can be read in full here.