Executive Order 14183
| Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness | |
| Seal of the President of the United States | |
| Type | Executive order |
|---|---|
| President | Donald Trump |
| Signed | January 27, 2025 |
| Summary | |
| The executive order directs the Department of Defense to revise policies to exclude individuals who identify with a gender different from their biological sex from military service, citing concerns over unit cohesion, mental and physical readiness, and overall military effectiveness. | |
Executive Order 14183, titled "Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness", is an executive order issued by President Donald Trump on January 27, 2025, banning transgender people from military service.[1] [2]
Provisions
[edit ]- The order declares it the policy of the United States government that identifying as a gender that differs from an individual's assigned sex "conflicts with a soldier's commitment to an honorable, truthful, and disciplined lifestyle, even in one's personal life".[3]
- The order declares that the use of pronouns inconsistent with one's assigned sex compromises the ability of the government to "establish high standards for troop readiness, lethality, cohesion, honesty, humility, uniformity, and integrity"[4]
- Within 60 days, the United States Department of Defense (USDOD) must update medical enlistment and retention standards to align with this order.
- The USDOD will discontinue the practice of accommodating pronoun usage based on self-identification rather than assigned sex.
- Within 30 days, the United States Secretary of Defense will:
- Identify further measures needed for full implementation.
- Provide a report to the President summarizing these measures.
- Service members will be required to use sleeping, changing, and bathing facilities corresponding to their assigned sex, with exceptions only in cases of operational necessity.
- The United States Secretary of Homeland Security will issue comparable directives for the United States Coast Guard within 30 days of the USDOD's implementation.
- This order:
- Will be executed in compliance with applicable laws and subject to budgetary considerations.
- Does not create enforceable legal rights or benefits for any individual against the U.S. government.
- Contains a severability clause ensuring that if any part of this order is found to be legally invalid, the remaining provisions shall remain in effect.
Implementation
[edit ]On February 10, 2025, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth filed a memo with the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. stating that, effective immediately, no "individuals with a history of gender dysphoria" would be permitted to join the military, and no "medical procedures associated with affirming or facilitating a gender transition" would be provided to service members.[5]
Legal challenges
[edit ]The order was challenged in a court filing by six active duty transgender service members, and two prospective members, who sought a preliminary injunction. One of the active duty soldiers alleged that while on approved leave to receive medical care, he received a call saying that he would be considered AWOL if he did not return immediately. In a court hearing with US District Judge Ana C. Reyes, the plaintiffs were argued for by GLAAD Senior Director of Transgender and Queer Rights Jennifer Levi; while the Department of Justice was represented by Jason Lynch.[6]
During the hearing, the plaintiffs argued that the order violated their rights under the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, and had made them "unequal and dispensable, demeaning them in the eyes of their fellow service members and the public". The defense meanwhile agreed that the transgender service members impacted were "honorable, truthful, and disciplined" and had made the United States safer, but argued for the ban on the grounds that "A transgender individual identifying as a woman is not similarly situated to a biological female, nor is a transgender individual identifying as a man similarly situated to a biological male".[4] [7]
Judge Reyes described the order as an attempt to label "an entire category of people dishonest, dishonorable, undisciplined, immodest, who lack integrity -- people who have taken an oath to defend this country, who have been under fire, people who have taken fire for this country", saying that it showed an "unadulterated animus" towards the transgender community, and that portions of it were "frankly ridiculous".[6] [4] Shortly thereafter, the Department of Justice filed a rare judicial complaint against Reyes for "hostile and egregious misconduct".[8]
See also
[edit ]- Transgender personnel in the United States military
- List of executive actions by Joe Biden
- List of executive orders in the second presidency of Donald Trump
- Executive Order 14187 ("Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation")
- Executive Order 14168 ("Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government")
References
[edit ]- ^ "Trump signs executive orders prioritizing military 'excellence and readiness'". Washington Examiner. January 28, 2025. Archived from the original on January 28, 2025. Retrieved January 29, 2025.
- ^ Bowman, Tom (January 28, 2025). "Trump has issued a number of orders affecting the military. Here's what they do". NPR. Archived from the original on January 29, 2025. Retrieved January 29, 2025.
- ^ Watson, Kathryn; Watson, Eleanor; Cook, Sara (January 28, 2025). "Trump signs executive orders for military, focusing on transgender service members, COVID, diversity - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved February 23, 2025.
- ^ a b c "Judge questions motives for Trump's order banning transgender troops". AP News. February 18, 2025. Retrieved February 23, 2025.
- ^ "Pentagon to ban trans people from joining military, pauses gender-transition procedures". NBC News . Reuters. February 10, 2025. Retrieved February 10, 2025.
- ^ a b Kheel, Rebecca (February 18, 2025). "'Unadulterated Animus': Judge Tears into Trump Administration at Hearing on Transgender Military Ban". Military.com. Retrieved February 23, 2025.
- ^ "'Unadulterated animus': Judge blasts DOJ about transgender military restrictions". ABC News. Retrieved February 23, 2025.
- ^ "US Justice Department accuses judge reviewing Trump transgender milit...". February 22, 2025. Archived from the original on February 22, 2025. Retrieved February 23, 2025.
