President Donald Trump on Monday announced he had signed four executive orders that will reshape the military, including banning transgender service members from serving in the US armed forces, gutting the military’s diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, and reinstating with back pay service members who were discharged for refusing to get vaccinated from Covid-19.
The orders were signed while Trump was on board Air Force One on a return flight to Washington from Florida, according to CNN.
The ban on transgender service members comes after Trump banned transgender Americans from serving in the military in 2017, only for then-President Joe Biden to repeal the ban in 2021. The new order outlines new military standards regarding gender pronouns and states that mental and physical readiness requires transgender service members to be banned from the military.
One of the officials said, “It can take a minimum of 12 months for an individual to complete treatments after transition surgery, which often involves the use of heavy narcotics. During this period, they are not physically capable of meeting military readiness requirements and require ongoing medical care. This is not conducive for deployment or other readiness requirements.”
The order also bans any “discriminatory” policies related to diversity, equity, and inclusion in the military, and Tasks Pentagon Chief Pete Hegseth to reinstate all active and reserve service members who were previously discharged for failing to get the Covid-19 vaccine.
Additionally, the order calls for an “Iron Dome” for America, a next-generation missile defense shield for the country to protect against ballistic, hypersonic, and advanced cruise missiles, as well as other next-generation aerial attacks.