In a decisive move to prioritize military readiness and national security, the Trump administration has formally asked the Supreme Court to allow the Pentagon to enforce its policy barring individuals with gender dysphoria or those who have undergone transgender medical treatments from military service.
The appeal follows rulings by two lower federal courts that temporarily blocked the administration’s policy, arguing that it was likely unconstitutional and rooted in discrimination. However, the Trump administration and the Defense Department maintain that the policy is grounded in professional military judgment, aimed at preserving the armed forces’ effectiveness and lethality. Evidence compiled during Trump’s first term highlighted that gender dysphoria could severely impact both individual deployability and overall unit readiness.
Key among the concerns cited by the administration is the significant recovery period required for transition-related surgeries. Service members undergoing these procedures often need at least 12 months of recovery and rely heavily on narcotics during that time, rendering them unable to meet deployment standards. Furthermore, ongoing medical needs present an operational burden incompatible with the unpredictable demands of military service.
Solicitor General John Sauer, representing the administration, forcefully argued that without a stay of the injunction, the military would be compelled to maintain a policy deemed detrimental to national interests for an extended and unnecessary period. Sauer urged the Court not only to stay the injunction entirely but at minimum to limit its scope to the eight individual challengers involved in the lawsuit.
The Supreme Court responded swiftly, setting a deadline for responses by May 1 at 5:00 p.m. ET, signaling the urgency and gravity of the matter.
President Trump’s executive orders on the issue are comprehensive. They ban the use of taxpayer funds for gender transition surgeries within the military and reaffirm biological sex distinctions in sleeping, changing, and bathing facilities. These actions directly overturn policies instituted by President Biden’s Executive Order 14004, which had dramatically expanded gender accommodations within the armed forces.
The broader Trump administration stance is clear: gender identity accommodations that conflict with biological sex not only undermine discipline but erode the foundational principles of truthfulness and selflessness essential to military service.
In a stark rebuke of past policies, a White House document accompanying the executive order declared that during the Biden administration, “gender insanity” had infiltrated military institutions, family structures, and broader culture — leading to costly taxpayer-funded surgeries and declining force readiness.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has been an outspoken advocate for this shift, insisting that the Department of Defense must recommit to core principles: ensuring every soldier, sailor, airman, and marine is physically and mentally capable of fighting and winning.
