The House voted Thursday to strongly oppose President Trump’s ban on transgender people serving openly in the military, a symbolic rebuke led by Democrats angry at Trump’s reversal of a policy established under President Barack Obama. It instead “strongly urges” the Defense Department to not implement the ban and to “maintain an inclusive policy” on allowing qualified transgender people to serve in the military. “Military service is a privilege, not a right.”Opponents of the transgender service ban continue to fight it in federal court, but the Trump administration has shown no indication of changing course on the policy — first announced publicly in a July 2017 tweet from the president. “After consultations 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. “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.

Source: Washington Post March 28, 2019 14:52 UTC