The Presidential Memorandum for the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Homeland Security Regarding Military Service by Transgender Individuals is the 43rd
presidential memorandum signed by
U.S. President Donald Trump on March 23, 2018.
The memorandum:
* Revokes the
Presidential Memorandum for the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Homeland Security.
* The
United States Secretary of Defense and
United States Secretary of Homeland Security may exercise their authority to implement any appropriate policies concerning military service by transgender individuals.
On 13 April 2018 the policy was
stayed when a federal district court ruled that the 2018 memorandum essentially repeated the same issues as its predecessor order from 2017, that transgender service members (and transgender individuals as a class) were a
protected class entitled to
strict scrutiny
In U.S. constitutional law, when a law infringes upon a fundamental constitutional right, the court may apply the strict scrutiny standard. Strict scrutiny holds the challenged law as presumptively invalid unless the government can demonstrate th ...
of adverse laws (or at worst, a
quasi-suspect class
In United States constitutional law, a suspect classification is a class or group of persons meeting a series of criteria suggesting they are likely the subject of discrimination. These classes receive closer scrutiny by courts when an Equal Protec ...
), and ordered that matter continue to a full trial hearing on the legality of the proposed policy.
On January 25, 2021, Trump's successor
Joe Biden signed an executive order revoking this memorandum.
Enactment
On March 23, 2018, Maj. David Eastburn, a Pentagon spokesman, told the ''
Washington Blade'' that the “DOD will still comply with federal court rulings and continue to assess and retain transgender service members,”. On March 24, 2018, Eastburn said that given ongoing lawsuits and court rulings on the issue that there is "likely be no immediate impact on transgender service." The Memorandum for Sector Commanders, Battalion Commanders, MEPS Commanders, Directors, and Special Staff Officers, issued December 8, 2017, enacted a policy guidance to recruits to explain how to enlist transgender individuals and states that the memorandum “shall remain in effect until expressly revoked.” On April 18, 2018,
Commandant Paul F. Zukunft
Paul Frederick Zukunft (born 30 January 1955) is a retired admiral of the United States Coast Guard who served as the 25th commandant. He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as the Commandant, with the rank of admiral, in May 2014 and relieved Ro ...
told the
United States House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security that the
United States Coast Guard would continue to allow transgender members to serve unless specific legislation is passed banning them. On February 6, 2019, Maj. Gen.
Matthew Beevers, the assistant adjutant general for the
California National Guard, told the California Assembly Veterans Affairs Committee that the California National Guard would not remove transgender soldiers and airmen from its ranks.
Lawsuits
There are four lawsuits involving the policy:
:* ''
Jane Doe v. Trump''
:* ''
Stone v. Trump''
:* ''
Karnoski v. Trump
''Karnoski v. Trump'' (2:17-cv-01297-MJP) was a lawsuit filed on August 29, 2017 in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington. The suit, like the similar suits ''Jane Doe v. Trump'', ''Stone v. Trump'', and ''Stockm ...
''
:* ''
Stockman v. Trump''
On April 13, 2018, the policy was
stayed in ''
Karnoski vs. Trump'' (Western District of Washington), when the court ruled that the 2018 memorandum essentially repeated the same issues as its predecessor order from 2017, that transgender service members (and transgender individuals as a class) were a
protected class entitled to
strict scrutiny
In U.S. constitutional law, when a law infringes upon a fundamental constitutional right, the court may apply the strict scrutiny standard. Strict scrutiny holds the challenged law as presumptively invalid unless the government can demonstrate th ...
of adverse laws (or at worst, a
quasi-suspect class
In United States constitutional law, a suspect classification is a class or group of persons meeting a series of criteria suggesting they are likely the subject of discrimination. These classes receive closer scrutiny by courts when an Equal Protec ...
), and ordered that matter continue to a full trial hearing on the legality of the proposed policy.
The government has petitioned the
US Supreme Court in November 2018 to reverse the stay while the cases are pending. The Court, in a 5–4 order along ideological lines issued in January 2019, agreed to lift the stay while they continued to deliberate on the merits of the cases.
Repeal
On January 25, 2021, President Joe Biden held a meeting with Secretary of Defense
Lloyd Austin and afterwards signed an executive order which lifted the transgender military ban.
See also
*
Transgender people and military service
Not all armed forces have policies explicitly permitting LGBT personnel. Generally speaking, Western European militaries show a greater tendency toward inclusion of LGBT individuals. As of January 2021, 21 countries allow transgender military pe ...
*
Sexual orientation and gender identity in military service
*
Sexual orientation and gender identity in the United States military
References
{{LGBT rights in the United States
2018 in American law
Discrimination against transgender people
LGBT rights in the United States
Transgender history in the United States
History of LGBT civil rights in the United States
Transgender law in the United States
Transgender people and the United States military
2018 in LGBT history
Trump administration controversies
United States presidential directives