The military is changing. Ex-President Barack Obama bowed to liberal pressures and began to welcome transgender troops at the end of his term. He urged the Pentagon so far that officials agreed to foot the bill for servicemen who desired a sex change, a procedure that hasn’t been effective in lowering the rate of depression and suicide within the transgender community. But hey, political points are easier to score than the truth.
The Trump administration, at least on its face, seems to be rectifying the damage. The commander-in-chief announced Wednesday morning that transgender soldiers will no longer be able to serve.
After consultation with my Generals and military experts, please be advised that the United States Government will not accept or allow……
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 26, 2017
….Transgender individuals to serve in any capacity in the U.S. Military. Our military must be focused on decisive and overwhelming…..
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 26, 2017
“After consultation 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 tweeted. “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.”
Bravo, President Trump. His decision, although it’s already being excoriated by the left, is the correct one. The American military is comprised of the world’s premier soldiers. Every single day they engage in risky, life-threatening behavior. Commanders can’t be asked to work with mentally ill troops.
Someone who’s unsure of their own gender is someone who’s not mentally sound. He or she is grappling with an intense psychological problem. It doesn’t have to be a bad thing, perhaps living life openly as a transgender individual will provide mental solace.
However, those issues need to be resolved before it makes sense for the government to hand them a gun. Sex reassignment surgeries are very expensive. The military is already working with a budget that’s much smaller than what they would like.
“Since becoming the Secretary of Defense, I have emphasized that the Department of Defense must measure each policy decision against one critical standard: will the decision affect the readiness and lethality of the force?” Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said last month.
“Put another way, how will the decision affect the ability of America’s military to defend the nation? It is against this standard that I provide the following guidance on the way forward in accessing transgender individuals into the military Services.”
The decision might impact the military’s ability to defend itself. Confused troops who don’t know if they want to be considered a woman or a man could be a liability on the battlefield, and exposing our military to something that could be potentially disastrous isn’t something that we should afford, even if we get political points from the left.
“We will continue to work closely with the White House to address the new guidance provided by the Commander-in-Chief on transgender individuals serving the military,” said Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. Jeff Davis. “We will provide revised guidance to the Department in the near future.”
(Source: Washington Post)