A federal judge in Washington criticized the Defense Department on Wednesday for misleading information in an attempt to justify the Trump administration’s ban on transgender servicemembers. Judge Ana Reyes questioned the administration’s lawyers during a lengthy hearing, emphasizing the importance of not selectively choosing sentences from studies. She is considering whether to halt the policy while it is being challenged by transgender military members and expects to make a decision next week.
Judge Reyes expressed concerns about the administration’s mischaracterization of studies and lack of context regarding the spending on medical services for transgender servicemembers. She highlighted her dismay at the derogatory language used in the executive order and policy signed by former President Trump, which restricted transgender individuals from serving in the military, cutting off funding for certain treatments, and removing transgender servicemembers from their positions.
Reyes criticized the Defense Department for its arguments and questioned the validity of the studies cited by the Pentagon. She pointed out flaws in the research findings and challenged the administration’s justifications for the ban. The Justice Department defended the policy, claiming that military leaders’ decisions should be respected with regard to the acceptance of servicemembers with gender dysphoria.
Ultimately, the judge is scrutinizing the evidence presented and considering the impact of the ban on transgender servicemembers. The case involves a group of plaintiffs challenging the ban and seeking a preliminary injunction against it.
The Justice Department argues that the court should respect the Pentagon’s decision-making process regarding the ban on transgender troops. The department’s attorney, Jason Manion, emphasized that it is not the place of the court to second-guess military leaders’ professional judgment, especially given that the current administration has the authority to make predictive judgments.
On the other hand, the plaintiffs challenging the policy question which set of military leaders they should defer to, pointing out that previous studies were used to support transgender individuals serving in the military. The number of individuals affected by the policy remains unspecified by the government, although a 2016 Rand Corporation estimate suggested that between 1,320 and 6,630 out of 1.3 million active-duty servicemembers were transgender.
The legal battle surrounding the ban has seen a back-and-forth between the Trump and Biden administrations, culminating in a lawsuit filed by members and recruits to block Trump’s ban on transgender servicemembers. The court has raised questions about the data used by the Pentagon to support the ban.
