Hudson Valley Officials React to Trump’s Transgender Military Ban
A number of local officials are speaking out about President Trump’s transgender military ban.
In a series of tweets Wednesday morning, President Trump announced he was banning transgender people from serving in the military.
Here in the Hudson Valley, reaction has been mostly negative, especially from New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand.
“This is so outrageous and disgusting,” Gillibrand said in a Facebook post. “There are transgender service members who put on uniforms and showed up to their military duties this morning, only to be told—on Twitter, no less—that their Commander-in-Chief doesn't want them in "any capacity.” It is beyond insulting to the service of those willing to die for this country. This new decision is harmful and misguided. It weakens—not strengthens—our military. And I’ll do everything in my power to fight it.”
Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (NY-18), the first openly gay member in Congress in New York, issued a statement that highlighted the impressive work of a number of transgender people in the military.
“Anyone who doubts the lethality of our trans service members should say that to Kristin Beck’s face – she’s a transgender member of SEAL Team 6, a veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, and a Bronze Star and Purple Heart recipient,” Maloney said. “Anyone who doubts their abilities should talk to Riley Dosh who is being denied a commission after graduating from West Point. Anyone who doubts their bravery should tell Shane Ortega, who ran over 400 combat missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. Transgender people have served well and honorably and any suggestion otherwise is just prejudice.”
Trump’s announcement came exactly 69 years, to the day, after President Harry Truman signed an executive order to desegregate the military, a link that wasn’t lost on New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
"In stark contrast, the Trump Administration's directive barring transgender members of the military is wrong, intolerant and a giant slide backwards in the fight for equal rights,” Cuomo said in a statement. “Valor knows no race, no creed, no gender, and no sexual identity, period. No matter who you are, New York will always fight for your rights to live freely and without discrimination. We stand united with the transgender community against those who seek to drive us apart."
White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Trump made his decision after extensive consultations with his national security team, adding the decision was based on what is best for the military.
Former Hudson Valley resident Caitlyn Jenner, a lifelong Republican, disagreed.
“Studies show that transgender people are more likely to enlist in the military than the general population — and it’s estimated there are approximately 134,000 transgender veterans in the U.S. today,” Jenner wrote on her website.
Trump’s announcement comes just over a year since a ban on transgender military service was lifted, a move that helped around 250 service members apply to change their gender in the military’s personal system, reports NBC.
A previous version incorrectly stated that Sean Patrick Maloney was the first openly gay member in Congress.
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